LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


'J    /,'  <7 


FROM 

REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL 


Reminiscences  and  Journal  Jottings 


OF  NEARLY  HALF  A  CENTURY  OF  NAVAL  LIFE 


BY  BENJAMIN  F.  SANDS 

Rear- A  dmiral  U.  S.  Navy. 


1827  to  1874 


NEW  YORK 

FREDERICK  A.  STOKES  COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 


Copyright,  1899,  by 
Frederick  A.  Stokes  Company 


INTRODUCTION. 


FOR  several  years  prior  to  the  last  illness  of  my  father, 
Rear-Admiral  Benjamin  F.  Sands,  the  members  of  our 
family  had  urged  him  to  write  out  his  recollections  of  his 
naval  life,  having  often  enjoyed  listening  to  his  descrip- 
tions of  the  incidents  of  his  various  cruises. 

He  had  preserved  copious  notes  of  his  service  ashore 
and  afloat,  in  journals  and  in  his  letters  home,  covering 
his  entire  career,  and  from  time  to  time  had  fully  outlined 
his  sketches  of  particular  matters  of  interest,  thus  having 
all  his  material  well  in  hand. 

It  was,  however,  only  when  confined  to  the  house,  in 
1 88 1,  that  he  yielded  to  our  requests  and  entered  upon 
the  work. 

In  thus  living  over  his  life  and  jotting  down  incidents 
at  first  intended  only  to  entertain  and  instruct  the  mem- 
bers of  his  family,  he  became  more  and  more  interested 
in  his  narrative,  and  with  his  excellent  memory  of  dates, 
persons  and  incidents,  supplemented  by  occasional  refer- 
ences to  the  log-books  of  the  many  vessels  upon  which 
he  had  served,  his  narrative  grew  into  somewhat  of  a 
hLtory,  though  but  simply  told,  of  those  days  of  naval 
service  about  which  so  little  is  known  to  the  readers  of 
to-day. 

The  narration  of  these  recollections  was  made  shortly 
before  his  death,  and  I  trust  it  will  prove  interesting 

vii 

226398 


viii  INTRODUCTION. 

through  its  recitals  of  incidents  in  the  careers  of  the  many 
distinguished  officers  named  who  have  passed  away,  and 
in  the  descriptions  of  a  naval  life  so  different  from  that 
of  the  naval  officer  of  the  present  day. 

In  the  old  brigs,  sloops-of-war,  and  frigates,  ship-board 
life  was  far  different  from  what  it  is  in  the  modern  cruisers 
and  battleships,  and  it  is  not  well  that  all  memories  of 
the  earlier  days  and  life  in  our  Navy  should  be  forgotten. 

With  all  the  modern  perfection  of  battleship  and  guns 
we  do  not  forget  the  effective  work  of  the  wooden  walls 
and  smooth-bore  guns  of  our  forefathers  ;  and  so,  per- 
chance, to  those  who  are  familiar  with  the  naval  life  and 
history  of  to-day,  a  glance  backward  at  the  careers  of 
those  officers  of  our  Navy  who  have  passed  from  our 
midst,  particularly  when  enlivened  by  sketches  of  personal 
incidents  of  the  old-time  shipboard  life,  may  prove  inter- 
esting ;  whilst  recollections  of  the  early  days  of  the  Navy 
may  be  so  revived,  through  the  perusal  of  these  pages, 
as  to  give  even  to  the  general  reader  some  moments  of 
gratification. 

Apart  from  the  incidents  personal  to  the  officers  men- 
tioned, throughout  the  narrative,  the  sketches  of  the 
author's  experiences  in  the  Mexican  war,  and  in  the  war 
of  the  rebellion,  as  well  as  those  treating  of  the  origin  and 
growth  of  our  Coast  Survey  service  and  of  the  foundation 
and  building  up  of  the  Naval  Observatory,  with  both  of 
which  Admiral  Sands  was  so  closely  connected,  must  be 
of  interest  to  many. 

F.  P.  B.  SANDS. 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAGB 

Start  west  to  Louisville,  Ky. — Join  my  uncle,  Colonel  Joseph 
H.  Hook,  at  Washington,  D.  C. — Stage  trip  east  over  the 
mountains,  1827 I 

CHAPTER  II. 

1828. — Appointed  a  midshipman  in  the  navy,  April  i,  1828 — 
Join  my  class  at  Brooklyn  Navy  Yard. — My  room-mate,  Mid- 
shipman Alex.  McClung,  of  Kentucky. — Ordered  to  sloop  of 
war  "  Vandalia." — First  acquaintance  with  D.  G.  Farragut 
and  Joshua  R.  Sands 6 

CHAPTER  III. 

Cruise  to  the  coast  of  Brazil ;  Old  Neptune  tries  to  board  the 
ship  on  the  Equator,  but  fear  of  cat-o'-nine-tails  deters  him. — 
Reach  Rio  de  Janeiro. — Strict  Old  Commodore  J.  O.  Creigh- 
ton. — Difficulty  with  natives. — Arrival  of  the  Empress. — The 
"  Boston  "  sails  for  home  in  violation  of  orders 15 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Duel  between  Midshipmen  McClung  and  Hinton. — McClung's 
peculiarities. — Quarrel  between  Lieutenant  Joshua .  R.  Sands 
and  Dr.  Bassett,  resulting  in  a  duel  in  which  Bassett  was 
killed  at  the  first  shot. — President  Jackson's  reception  of 
Sands  and  comment  on  his  duel. — Accession  of  William  IV. 
to  the  English  throne  celebrated  in  Rio. — Made  a  deck 

officer  for  the  first  time  I9th  September,  1830 34 

ix 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

PACK 

Captain  Beverly  Kennon's  kind  treatment  of  his  midshipmen. — 
Political  trouble  and  changes  of  government  in  Brazil 
sketched. — Personal  courage  of  Emperor  Dom  Pedro  I. — His 
abdication  in  favor  of  his  son. — Trouble  on  shore  in  October, 
1831. — The  Regency. — British  Frigate  "Tribune"  arrives. — 
Her  Captain's  miniature  frigate. — Homeward  bound 44 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Cruise  in  the  sloop  of  war  "  St.  Louis,"  in  the  West  Indies. — A 
death  from  sea-sickness. — Lieutenant  Ward  B.  Burnett,  U. 
S.  army,  takes  passage  with  us. — Visit  Hayti. — Official  re- 
ception.— Dance  with  the  lovely  natives. — Quadroon  girls. ...  57 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Continuation  of  the  St.  Louis  cruise. — Dinner  with  the  Dutch 
Governor-General  at  St.  Thomas. — Arrive  in  port,  New  York, 
in  July.— Join  the  Naval  School  at  Norfolk,  Va.— Delightful 
time  there. — Our  regulation  uniform. — A  midshipman  on  $19 
per  month  "  pops  the  question." — The  meteoric  shower  of 
November,  1833 63 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Stand  examination  for  promotion  in  Baltimore,  at  Barnum's 
Hotel. — Pass  No.  12  on  list  of  67  who  got  through  satisfac- 
torily  , 77 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Enjoy  Kentucky  hospitality  again. — Join  the  U.  S.  coast  survey 
in  May,  1835. — The  great  base  line  on  Fire  Island. — Camp 
out. — Close  and  crowded  quarters. — Spooning. — Gedney 
Channel  discovered  by  our  party. — Engaged  to  be  married. 
— Office  work  .  ....  81 


CONTENTS.  XI 

CHAPTER  X. 


Visit  the  President  with  Superintendent  Hassler. — Our  chief's 
quaint  field-carriage. — Recollections  and  anecdotes  of  Hassler. 
— His  rage  at  the  Committee  of  Congress. — A  shipwreck  off 
Sandy  Hook. — My  marriage,  November  I5th,'  1836 87 

CHAPTER  XL 

Join  Assistant  Charles  Renard's  party  in  the  field. — Continue 
our  plane-table  surveying  on  coast 96 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Captain  Kidd's  treasure. — Survey  work  on  south  shore  of  Long 
Island. — Go  to  New  London,  Connecticut,  to  survey. — Our 
hosts  during  that  season 101 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Survey  of  coast  of  New  Jersey. — Camp  life  amongst  the  natives  of 
the  Jersey  marshes. —  Off  Barnegat. —  Pleasant  times  and 
plenty  of  work. — Mrs.  Sands  overboard  in  Little-Egg  Harbor. 
— Her  rescue 109 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Popularity  of  this  coast  survey  work  amongst  the  naval  officers. 
— Increased  detail  of  officers  for  it. — Quarrel  between  two 
officers,  David  D.  Porter  and  Stephen  G.  Rowan. — A  duel 
prevented  by  the  seconds. — My  gratification  at  being  able  to 
prevent  it. — Interesting  sequel  thereto 130 

CHAPTER   XV. 

1841. — Carlisle  B.  Patterson  joins  my  party. — Is  promoted  and 
wets  his  commission  with  disastrous  results  to  his  pocket. — 
Our  monster  oyster  a  breakfast  for  three! — JerT.  Page  joins 
my  mess  for  part  of  season. — Preparations  for  sea  cruise. ...  128 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

PAGE 

Ordered  to  the  Ship  of  the  Line  "  Columbus." — Sail  for  the 
Mediterranean. —  Gibraltar. — Off  for  Port  Mahon.  —  Genoa 
la  Superba. — Visit  from  the  Dowager  Queen  of  Prussia 133 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Genoa  la  Superba — Splendor  of  the  churches — Duel  between 
Midshipmen  Cooke  and  Bier. —  Padre  Callaghan,  the  Car- 
melite.— The  sweet  singing  of  Clara  Novella,  the  famous 
prima  donna. — Compelled  to  sing  by  the  police. — Our  grand 
regatta  and  delightful  entertainment  on  the  "  Columbus." — 
Painting  by  Raphael  and  Giulio  Romano 146 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

John  Howard  Payne  at  Port  Mahon. — Commodore  Morris  re- 
lieves Commodore  Morgan,  who  is  to  succeed  in  command  of 
the  Brazil  Squadron. — French  Consul's  ball. — Entertainment 
on  the  "  Columbus." — Squadron  sails  from  Port  Mahon. — 
Part  company. — Away  for  Toulon 158 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Government  docks  at  Toulon. — Off  for  the  Brazil  station. — Our 
old  Commodore  returns  home. — Dine  with  our  minister 
Slocum  at  his  lovely  home  outside  of  Rio. — Salutes  to  the 
new  Empress. — Reception  ceremonies 163 

CHAPTER   XX. 

The  siege  of  Montevideo. — Garibaldi  in  his  earliest  battle. — 
The  French  Admiral's  diplomacy. — Americans  liked  by  both 
parties  because  of  their  strict  neutrality — Return  home 172 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Join  the  Depot  of  Charts  and  Instruments. — The  foundation  of 
the  Naval  Observatory. — Cruise  in  brig  "  Washington." — 
Crossing  the  Bahama  Bank  at  night. — Blockade  on  Mexican 
coast. — Dance  a  fandango  at  Carmen. — A  lady's  airy  cos- 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 

PAGE 

tume. — The  capture  of  Tabasco  by  the  navy. — Graphicde- 
scription  of  the  capture  of  Mexico  and  the  battles  preceding 
it,  in  a  letter  from  the  field 178 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Ordered  to  the  brig  "  Porpoise." — Sail  for  coast  of  Africa. — 
Reach  Cape  de  Verde. — Captain  Canot,  the  celebrated  slave- 
trader. — Capture  of  a  slaver  under  Brazilian  colors. — Our  cap- 
tain lets  her  go. — California  gold-hunters. — Santa  Cruz. — The 
Amazon  army  of  the  King  of  Dahomey 193 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Porto  Grande. — Quarrel  between  Gordon  and  the  Portuguese 
Commandante. — Captain  Gordon  dies  of  fever. — Ordered  to 
"  Yorktown  "  sloop  of  war.  In  command  of  the  brig  "  Por- 
poise," homeward  bound. — St.  Thomas,  West  Indies. — Home.  208 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Ordered  to  command  the  Coast  Survey  Steamer  "  Walker." — 
Captain  Joseph  Fry,  of  the  "  Virginius." — His  death  in  Cuba. 
— Survey  work  in  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  deep  sea-soundings 
in  Gulf  Stream — Important  discoveries. — Signals  invented. — 
Deep  sea  sounding  apparatus  and  specimen  tube  designed. . .  211 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

1860-61. — Bearer  of  secret  despatches  to  the  gulf  squadron. — 
Destruction  of  the  Navy  Yard  at  Norfolk,  Va. — Ordered  to 
command  Coast  Survey  Steamer  "  Active,"  on  Pacific  Coast. 
— Amusing  incident  in  Acapulco  Bay. — Steamer  "  Orizaba  " 
aground  in  a  fog. — Reach  San  Francisco,  July  4,  1861 218 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

The  work  of  the  "  Active." — Check  of  the  Secession  movement 
at  Los  Angeles. — Guard  the  Magazine  at  Mare  Island. — War 
excitement  in  San  Francisco. — Survey  on  the  coast. — Sail  for 
home  without  orders. — Ordered  to  duty  promptly 234 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

PACK 

The  Wilmington,  N.  C.,  blockade. — Outline  of  work  cut  out 
for  the  navy  during  the  war. — The  onerous  and  valuable  work 
of  the  blockade. — The  merit  of  those  doing  that  duty. — 
Character  of  the  work. — Successful  blockade. —  Incidents  of 
the  service. — Capture  of  "  blockade  runners." — Escape  of  the 
"  Tallahassee." — Attack  on  "  Fort  Caswell." — The  rebel  ram. 
— Destruction  of  rebel  salt  works  at  Masonboro  Inlet. — 
Little  "  Fort  Jackson  "  Carter. — Incidents  during  my  com- 
mand of  that  division  of  the  blockade 241 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

After  Sherman's  march  to  the  sea. — First  bombardment  of  Fort 
Fisher. — Butler's  fiasco ! 256 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Second  bombardment  and  capture  of  Fort  Fisher. — Land  assault 
by  the  navy. — Great  gallantry  of  the  army. — Scenes  from  the 
"  Fort  Jackson  " 261 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

Ordered  to  command  the  second  division  of  West  Gulf  block- 
ading squadron. — Busy  work. — Flags  of  truce. — Negotiations 
for  surrender. — Terms  of  final  surrender  of  the  last  foothold 
of  the  Confederacy  agreed  to  and  signed  in  the  cabin  of  the 
U.  S.  "  Fort  Jackson,"  on  June  2d,  1865. — I  take  posses- 
sion of  Galveston  and  hoist  the  "  Stars  and  Stripes  "  once 
more. — Correspondence  with  General  J.  Bankhead  Magruder, 
commanding  the  rebel  forces. — Promoted  to  rank  of  Com- 
modore   270 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

Detached  from  Boston  Navy  Yard. — Appointed  superintendent 
of  U.  S.  Naval  Observatory,  May,  1867. — Sketch  of  that  in- 
stitution and  its  work. — Attempts  of  civilians  to  change  its 
control. — Promotion  to  rank  of  Rear-Admiral 279 


CONTENTS.  XT 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

PACK 

My  administration  of  the  Observatory  affairs. — The  Transit  of 
Venus  Commission. — The  eclipses  of  the  sun. — The  great 
Equatorial. — The  origin  of  the  "  Weather  Bureau." — Valuable 
work  of  the  Observatory. — My  retirement  from  active  service. 
— An  end , .  290 


FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 


CHAPTER  I. 

START  WEST  TO  LOUISVILLE,  KY. — JOIN  MY  UNCLE, 
COLONEL  JOSEPH  H.  HOOK,  AT  WASHINGTON, 
D.  C. — STAGE  TRIP  EAST  OVER  THE  MOUNTAINS, 
1827. 

WHEN  I  was  yet  very  young,  my  father  and 
mother  left  the  city  of  Baltimore,  where  I  was  born, 
and,  going  out  west,  located  the  family  in  Louisville, 
Kentucky.  There  I  passed  the  early  years  of  my 
childhood,  receiving  such  education  as  could  be 
obtained  there  until  I  was  in  my  fourteenth  year. 

My  two  elder  brothers  had  been  started  in  busi- 
ness with  bright  prospects  before  them,  and  it 
became  a  question  as  to  my  future  career. 

In  those  days,  when  settlements  were  few  and  far 
between,  there  was  but  a  limited  choice  of  occupa- 
tion for  young  men. 

The  professions  of  law  and  medicine,  which  in 
those  days  of  honest  devotion  to  the  welfare  and 
interests  of  client  and  patient,  with  but  modest  fees 
taken  for  valuable  services,  were  not  deemed  by  all 


TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  surest  roads  to  prosperity.  In  commercial  life, 
all  who  could  do  so  took  honorable  occupation, 
whilst  the  more  adventurous  struck  out  for  them- 
selves in  the  uncertain  paths  of  the  far  west. 

My  parents  had  about  concluded  to  start  me  in  a 
commercial  career;  but  "  the  best-laid  plans  of  men 
and  mice  aft  gang  aglee,"  and  a  communication 
coming  to  my  mother  from  a  bachelor  uncle  (Major 
Joseph  H.  Hook,  U.  S.  Army,  afterwards  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel and  Assistant  Commissary-General) 
changed  my  prospects.  This  officer  was  the  favorite 
brother  of  my  mother  and  was  at  the  time  stationed 
in  Washington  City,  and  his  letter  suggested  that 
she  send  on  to  him  one  of  her  sons  to  cheer  him  in 
his  bachelorhood,  promising  that  he  would  care  for 
his  future. 

In  the  family  conclave  this  proposition  was 
formally  discussed,  and  it  being  concluded  to  accept 
the  fraternal  offer,  I  was  the  one  selected  to  go  ;  and 
at  the  first  breaking  up  of  the  ice  in  the  Ohio  River, 
in  the  winter  of  1827,  I  was  on  my  way  eastward 
with  the  first  merchants  who  started  from  the  west 
for  their  spring  supply  of  goods. 

Beingknown  to  most  of  those  from  Louisville,  I  was 
not  entirely  alone  on  the  trip  ;  and  being  so  young  I 
received  kindnesses  from  the  whole  party. 

How  well  do  I  remember  our  arrival  at  Wheeling, 
where  I  was  among  the  first  in  the  foot-race  to  the 
stage  office  to  obtain  seats.  It  was  well  known  to 
all  travelers  that  the  number  of  stage-coaches  then 
provided  was  not  sufficient  for  the  many  passengers 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR  -ADMIRAL.         J   ^ 

going  east  at  that  season  of  the  year,  and  the  "  first 
come "  being  the  "  first  served,"  many  of  course 
had  to  stop  over  until  the  next  coaches  were  ready 
to  start. 

I  was  amongst  the  fortunate  ones  on  this  occasion, 
and,  being  the  only  youngster,  was  probably  helped 
by  the  elder  portion  of  the  crowd,  for  there  was  a 
regular  rush  up  from  the  muddy  banks  of  the  Ohio 
River. 

All  these  things  made  a  great  impression  on  my 
mind  from  the  novelty  of  my  position,  being  for 
the  first  time  away  from  home  looking  after  myself, 
and  entirely  filled  with  all  the  importance  of  being 
for  the  time  a  free  agent,  with  all  the  world  before 
me. 

I  have  a  vivid  recollection  of  all  the  minutiae  of 
that  eventful  trip  across  the  mountains  cooped  up 
in  the  shaking,  swaying,  jolting  coach. 

We  were  nearly  three  days  on  the  journey,  and 
it  was  a  hard  experience  for  one  of  my  age. 

I  was,  however,  well  cared  for  by  my  older  fellow- 
travelers,  and  the  time  did  not  seem  long  ere  I  was 
dumped  out  of  the  stage  at  the  door  of  my  uncle's 
boarding-house  on  the  southeast  corner  of  Pennsyl- 
vania Avenue  and  Fifteenth  Street,  kept  by  a  Cap- 
tain Peck,  an  old  pensioner  army  officer,  the  old 
house  standing  where  now  is  Randall's  building, 
occupied  by  the  Quartermaster-General's  office. 

I  remember  the  odd  appearance  I  must  have  pre- 
sented to  the  lookers-on,  in  my  western  rig,  with  otter- 
skin  cap  and  yellow  overcoat  with  standing  collar 


TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

and  short  cape,  the  February  of  that  year  proving 
quite  cold  enough  to  warrant  my  wrappings. 

A  most  kindly  reception  by  my  uncle  made  me 
feel  at  once  at  home. 

His  associates  being  mostly  bachelor  army  officers, 
he  bethought  himself  of  my  loneliness  amongst  so 
many  older  persons,  and  sent  for  a  young  friend  as  a 
companion  for  me,  and  thus  my  first  acquaintance  in 
the  east  was  William  H.  French  (afterwards  Major- 
general  U.  S.  Army). 

We  two  became  fast  friends  from  the  start,  and 
his  family  were  the  first  I  knew  in  Washington,  he 
taking  me  to  his  home  the  next  day  and  introducing 
me  to  his  parents  and  his  two  sisters,  one  of  whom 
became  subsequently  the  partner  of  my  life. 

It  may  readily  be  imagined  that  I  thought  my 
new  life  was  opening  very  brightly  for  me,  and  this 
house  became  almost  a  home  to  me,  my  evenings 
being  spent  in  that  family  circle  with  my  new  friend, 
and  I  was  as  happy  as  the  day  was  long. 

My  uncle  had  been  wounded  in  an  unfortunate 
duel,  and  was  so  disabled  as  to  prevent  his  walking 
without  the  assistance  of  his  cane  and  a  friend's  arm, 
and  into  this  place  I  quickly  stepped  when  I  saw 
how  welcome  such  aid  was  to  him,  thus  becoming 
his  almost  constant  companion  on  his  round  of  daily 
visits.  I  accompanying  him,  also,  in  his  horseback 
rides  to  and  from  his  office,  his  body-servant  always 
following  at  a  respectful  distance  on  a  third  horse, 
carrying  the  Major's  cane,  which  he  handed  to  him 
upon  his  dismounting,  holding  the  horse  on  these 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  5 

occasions,  while  the  Major  took  my  arm  upon  reach- 
ing the  sidewalk. 

As  was  natural  for  a  western  boy,  I  enjoyed  my 
horseback  exercise,  the  kindness  of  the  Major  having 
provided  a  fine  animal  for  my  special  use.  But  he 
did  not  permit  me  to  pass  all  my  time  in  such  pleas- 
ure, placing  me  soon  at  school  with  a  Mr.  Haskell, 
next  door  to  St.  John's  Episcopal  School  in  the 
West-end,  and  subsequently  with  a  Mr.  Jewett  on 
F.  Street,  between  I3th  and  i$th  streets,  where  I 
remained  for  a  year. 


CHAPTER  II. 
1828. 

APPOINTED  A  MIDSHIPMAN   IN   THE   NAVY,  APRIL  I, 

1828 — JOIN  MY  CLASS  AT  BROOKLYN  NAVY  YARD 
— MY  ROOM-MATE  MIDSHIPMAN  ALEX.  McCLUNG  OF 
KENTUCKY — ORDERED  TO  SLOOP-OF-WAR  "  VAN- 
DALIA" — FIRST  ACQUAINTANCE  WITH  D.  G.  FAR- 

RAGUT  AND  JOSHUA  R.  SANDS. 

"  A  CHANGE  came  over  the  spirit  of  my  dream  " 
early  in  the  succeeding  year.  Hon.  John  L.  Davis, 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  Hon. 
Thomas  H.  Blake,  the  Commissioner  of  the  General 
Land  Office,  who  had  been  members  of  the  legislature 
of  Indiana  with  my  eldest  brother,  becoming  interest- 
ed in  my  behalf,  obtained  for  me,  through  their  united 
influence  with  Hon.  Samuel  L.  Southard,  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Navy,  an  appointment  as  an  acting  mid- 
shipman in  the  United  States  Navy  on  the  ist  day 
of  April,  1828. 

How  I  remember  the  feelings  aroused  within  me 
by  the  perusal  of  the  printed  letter  of  appointment 
which  was  handed  to  me.  There  was  no  naval 

academy  then,  and  a  midshipman  had  to  begin  work 
6 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  7 

as  such  at  once,  as  I  found   from  that  communica- 
tion, which  read : — 

NAVY  DEPARTMENT, 

ist  April,  1828. 
SIR:— 

You  are  hereby  appointed  an  ACTING  MIDSHIP- 
MAN IN  THE  NAVY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  ;  and 
if  your  commanding  officer  shall,  after  six  months 
of  actual  service  at  sea,  report  favorably  of  your  char- 
acter, talents  and  qualifications,  a  warrant  will  be 
given  to  you,  bearing  the  date  of  this  letter. 

I  have  enclosed  a  description  of  the  uniform,  and 
the  requisite  oath ;  the  latter  when  taken  and  sub- 
scribed you  will  transmit  to  this  department,  with 
your  letter  of  acceptance,  in  which  you  will  state 
your  age,  and  the  place  where  you  were  born.  Your 
pay  will  not  commence  until  you  shall  receive  orders 
for  actual  service. 

I  am,  respectfully,  etc., 

SAM'L  L.  SOUTHARD. 
MID'N  BENJ'N  F.  SANDS,  of  Kentucky, 
Washington. 

I  promptly  took  the  oath  referred  to  and  sent  my 
letter  of  acceptance,  and  then  studied  carefully  the 
description  of  the  prescribed  uniform,  which  I  read 
from  the  general  order  enclosed  to  be  as  follows,  for 
"  midshipman's  full  dress  "  : 

Coat. — Blue  cloth,  with  lining  of  same,  the  lapels 
to  be  short,  with  six  buttons,  standing  collar,  with  a 


8  FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

diamond  formed  of  gold  lace,  on  each  side,  not  ex- 
ceeding two  inches  square,  no  buttons  on  the  cuffs 
or  pockets,  the  buttons  to  be  according  to  the  draw- 
ing No.  4.  When  in  full  dress  to  wear  plain  cocked 
hat,  half  boots,  and  cut-and-thrust  swords,  with 
yellow  mountings. 

Pantaloons  and  vest. — White,  the  same  as  lieuten- 
ant's, except  the  buttons  on  the  pocket-flaps." 

I  am  afraid  that  the  prohibited  buttons  on  the 
"  cuffs  and  pocket-flaps "  did  not  make  me  feel 
as  humble  as  their  absence  should  have  done,  and 
even  now,  when  I  read  over  that  general  order  of 
May  10,  1820,  and  reflect  upon  the  many  changes  of 
uniform  with  which  the  navy  has  been  afflicted,  and 
when  I  note  how  frequent  those  changes  have  been 
of  late  years,  it  sets  me  to  wondering  whether  or 
not  it  is  an  indication  that  in  those  who  bend  their 
minds  to  the  arduous  task  of  designing  the  changes, 
the  "  tailoring  instinct  "  does  not  predominate  to  the 
exclusion  of  more  serious  thoughts  in  connection 
with  their  profession. 

But  to  resume  the  thread  of  my  yarn.  I  was 
ordered  to  report  at  the  New  York  Navy  Yard  for 
duty  in  the  month  of  July  following,  and  this  gave 
me  but  a  short  time  for  a  visit  to  my  parents  in 
Kentucky,  to  take  leave  of  them  prior  to  going  on  a 
cruise. 

My  return  to  Washington  in  the  early  part  of 
June  enabled  me  to  accompany  a  party  with  my 
uncle,  to  witness  the  grand  spectacle  of  the  Proces- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  9 

sion  of  the  Arts  in  Baltimore  on  the  anniversary  of 
the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

Proceeding  to  New  York  and  reporting  to  Com- 
modore Isaac  Chauncey,  I  was  placed  at  once  in  a 
class  of  youngsters  to  learn  the  rudiments  of  naviga- 
tion. There  was  no  schoolhouse,  so  our  class,  with 
another  of  older  midshipmen,  preparing  for  their 
final  examination  for  promotion,  was  located  in  the 
loft  of  one  of  the  ship  houses. 

Our  class  was  a  large  one,  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  having  been  appointed,  and  we  were  scattered 
amongst  the  boarding-houses  near  the  Navy  Yard 
gate  in  Brooklyn. 

My  quarters  were  first  in  Sands  Street,  and  after- 
wards, to  be  nearer  the  Yard,  I  moved  to  York 
Street,  and  then  I  had  for  my  room-mate  Alex- 
ander M.  McClung,  another  Kentuckian,  a  wild, 
harum-scarum  kind  of  a  fellow.  He  was  my  bed- 
fellow, also,  the  midshipman's  finances  necessitating 
economy. 

I  remember  his  accusing  me  one  night  of  taking 
his  side  of  the  bed,  and  he  drew  my  sword  from  its 
scabbard  to  force  me  to  move,  when,  seeing  that  he 
had  not  scared  me,  he  sheathed  it  with  a  laugh,  say- 
ing that  he  really  believed  he  would  have  run  me 
through  the  body  if  I  had  seemed  at  all  nervous,  or 
made  any  demonstration  towards  him. 

He  was  a  hot-tempered  fellow  and  had  to  leave 
the  service  afterwards  for  fighting  a  duel  with  a 
messmate,  whilst  we  were  attached  to  the  same  ship. 
He  was  afterwards  engaged  in  several  affairs  of 


10          FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

that  kind,  killing  in  one  of  them  his  adversary,  a 
Mr.  Menifee  of  Kentucky. 

In  the  month  of  October  following,  our  class  was 
separated  by  orders  to  different  ships  then  fitting 
out  for  sea. 

I  was  ordered  to  the  sloop-of-war  "  Vandalia  "  of 
24  guns,  one  of  the  seven  new  sloops-of-war  just 
built,  and  fitting  out  for  sea  at  the  Philadelphia 
Navy  Yard. 

We  were  quartered  at  a  boarding-house  on  Front 
Street  until  our  mess  was  ready  for  us  ;  and  as  we 
were  of  very  little  use  in  our  chrysalis  state,  we  were 
required  to  be  on  board  during  the  day  simply  to 
look  on  at  the  process  of  reeving  gear  and  the  other 
fittings  of  the  vessel  incident  to  preparing  her  for  sea, 
that  we  might  in  that  way  learn  something  of  our 
duties. 

Occasionally  while  the  crew  would  be  on  board  of 
the  receiving  ship  at  their  mess,  I  would  steal  aloft 
unseen,  as  I  hoped,  to  try  my  steadiness  of  head, 
going  a  little  higher  aloft  and  a  little  further  out  on 
the  yard-arms  each  day,  until  I  was  at  home  in  the 
rigging  and  spars  aloft.  But  I  thought  I  never 
should  be  able  to  learn  the  uses  of  the  numberless 
ropes  around  me  when  I  was  informed  that  each  had 
its  appropriate  name  and  use,  known  to  those  who 
were  initiated. 

On  one  of  these  occasions  of  the  meal-time  ab- 
sences of  the  other  officers  and  the  crew  of  riggers,  a 
gentleman  in  plain  clothes  came  on  board,  and  in 
wandering  about  the  ship  came  up  to  me  and  asked 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          II 

the  caliber  of  the  guns,  of  which  I  was  totally  ignor- 
ant ;  but,  having  heard  talk  of  the  late  improvements 
in  gunnery  of  the  medium  24-pounders,  I  replied 
in  a  confident  manner,  not  wishing  to  betray  my 
ignorance,  that  they  were  "  medium  twenty-fours," 
at  which  he  smiled  and  thanked  me. 

The  next  day  this  same  gentleman  reported  in 
uniform  as  the  lieutenant  of  our  ship,  and  was 
Joshua  R.  Sands,  who  became  afterwards  my  warm 
friend,  and  to  whom  I  was  indebted  for  many  kind- 
nesses, and  for  his  interest  in  teaching  me  my  pro- 
fession. 

He  afterwards  became  a  rear-admiral.  We  used 
to  while  away  many  hours  endeavoring  to  trace  out 
a  relationship,  for  he  took  a  great  fancy  to  me,  and 
to  this  day  calls  me  "  youngster,"  although  both  are 
gray  in  the  service,  and  he  the  oldest  on  the  list. 

On  the  1 2th  December  Mr.  George  W.  Slocum, 
consul  at  Buenos  Ayres,  came  on  board  for  passage 
to  the  coast  of  Brazil. 

By  this  time  we  were  ready  for  sea,  and  dropped 
down  the  river  to  Chester  to  be  clear  of  the  ice,  which 
was  expected  to  be  forming  soon.  Our  officers  were 
as  follows : 

Master  commandant — John  Gallagher,  Comdg.     Died  Captain, 
ist   Lieutenant — Samuel  W.  Downing.     Cashiered  Captain,  1854. 
2d  "  Joshua  R.  Sands.     Afterwards  Rear-Admiral. 

3d  "  William  H.  Gardner.     Died  Commodore. 

4th          "  David  G.  Farragut.     Died  Admiral  of  the  Navy 

and  Naval  Hero  of  the  war  of  rebellion. 

5th         "  Joseph  Mattison.     Resigned  as  Commander. 

6th         "  Cadwallader  Ringgold.    Died  Rear-Admiral. 


12          FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Purser— Garret  R.  Barry,     Died  Pay  Director. 
Sailing  Master — N.  C.  Lawrence.     Died  Lieutenant. 
Surgeon— S.  W.  Bassett.    Killed  in  duel. 

STEERAGE  OFFICERS. 

Surgeon's  Mate — R.  D.  Barnum.     Resigned  1829.  Succeeded  by 

"  E.  B.  Hunter.     Afterwards  Medical  Director. 

Midshipmen — Joseph  F.  Green.     Afterwards  Rear-Admiral. 

A.  C.  Hinton.     Afterwards  Commander  in  Texan 

Navy. 

"  H.  S.  Stellwagen.     Died  Captain. 

"  Benj.  F.  Sands.     Afterwards  Rear- Admiral. 

"  Peter  Gansvoort.     Died  off  Long  Island  returning 

home. 

"  George  W.  Hurst.     Died  Lieutenant. 

"  Wm.  J.  Jenkins.     Afterwards  Yeoman  and  Seaman. 

"  Alex.    M.    McClung.     Left   ship  because  of  duel 

with  Hinton. 

"  C.  C.  Barton.     Died  Lieutenant. 

**  John  T.  Williams.     Resigned  as  Passed  Midship- 

man. 
"  Francis  E.  Joyner.     Last  heard  of  as  Dock  Loafer, 

New  York. 
"  Philip  M.  Box.     Was   clerk  in  P.  O.,  Savannah,  in 

1853- 

"  John  M.  Buchanan.     Resigned  as  Midshipman. 

"  John  De  Camp.     Died  Rear-Admiral. 

"  Robert  Deacon.     Died  Midshipman. 

"  James  Thruston.     Resigned   in   1836  as  Midship- 


I  was  thoroughly  impressed  with  the  importance 
of  the  profession  which  I  had  adopted  when  I  wit- 
nessed the  maneuvers  of  "  backing  and  filling  "  on  an 
ebb-tide  against  a  fresh  head-wind,  as  we  dropped 
down  the  river,  shooting  ahead  at  one  moment 
to  one  side  of  the  stream,  and  at  the  next  backing 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          13 

over  to  the  other  side,  whilst  the  tide  carried  us 
down  on  our  course  towards  the  Delaware  Bay. 

I  thought  I  had  struck  the  career  most  congenial 
to  me ;  and  often  since  then  have  wondered  how 
clearly  I  understood  the  object  of  each  order  at  the 
time,  and  I  recall  my  admiration  of  the  skill  required 
in  its  execution. 

More  especially  was  I  convinced  that  I  was  in 
my  element  when  I  discovered  that  I  was  not  to  be 
subjected  to  sea-sickness,  which  overcame  all  my 
messmates  of  the  steerage  when  we  attained  mid- 
ocean. 

Mal-de-mer  had  lost  for  me  its  terrors,  and  heimweh 
was  prevented  by  the  very  novelty  of  my  situation. 
Coming  as  I  had  from  the  "  bush,"  as  the  West  was 
then  called,  and  launched,  as  it  were,  upon  the  mighty 
ocean,  I  felt  that  I  had  grown  at  one  jump  into 
a  man's  estate,  with  happy,  pleasant  surroundings, 
agreeable  duties,  and  a  bright  future  before  me. 
Everything  was  couleur  de  rose. 

As  soon  as  I  had  my  sea-legs  I  reveled  in  going 
aloft  and  from  the  topmast-head  gazing  upon  the 
vast  expanse  of  ocean  that  surrounded  us,  which, 
with  bathos  I  could  not  attain  to,  another  reefer  de- 
clared to  be  ''''like  dad's  race-course." 

There  is  certainly  a  great  fascination  in  the  life, 
a  charm  in  the  very  loneliness  of  the  solitary  ship 
as  she  gracefully  glides  through  the  sea;  a  charm 
that  is  intensified  to  a  youngster  on  his  first  cruise 
by  the  extreme  novelty  of  everything  he  sees  and 
hears  on  shipboard  and  in  the  air  around  him. 


14         FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

What  wonderment  fills  his  soul  at  the  vast  amount 
of  work  following  each  terse,  sharp  order  of  the 
officer  of  the  deck  in  language  all  Greek  to  the  tyro  ! 
He  hears  in  seeming  answer  the  shrill  piping  of  the 
boatswain's  whistle,  and  sees  the  men  on  watch 
swarming  aloft  and  in  an  instant  sails  are  furled 
or  set  as  ordered ;  and  at  another  order  down 
they  speed  to  the  deck,  where  again  perfect  quiet 
prevails,  except  from  the  singing  of  the  wind  in  the 
rigging,  or  from  the  heavy  swash  of  the  leaping 
waters  as  they  roll  back  hissing  and  surging  from 
under  the  bows  of  the  ship. 

His  eye  takes  in  the  graceful  lines  of  the  flowing 
canvas  which  clothes  the  ship  from  royals  to  the 
deck ;  and  the  tapering  spars  and  taut  rigging 
sharply  outlined  against  the  snowy  whiteness  of  the 
sails  hold  the  gaze  entranced  awhile  ere  it  falls  upon 
the  tossing  billows,  which  near  at  hand  would  seem- 
ingly strive  to  o'erwhelm  us  as  we  pass  over  their 
crests,  but  which,  as  the  glance  nears  the  distant 
horizon,  gradually  appear  to  fall  away  until  that 
faint  line  is  reached,  so  level  and  unbroken,  marking, 
as  it  were,  where  the  waters  end  and  the  blue  of  the 
sky  begins. 


CHAPTER  III. 

CRUISE  TO  THE  COAST  OF  BRAZIL  ;  OLD  NEPTUNE 
TRIES  TO  BOARD  THE  SHIP  ON  THE  EQUATOR,  BUT 
FEAR  OF  CAT-O'-NINE-TAILS  DETERS  HIM — REACH 
RIO  DI  JANEIRO— STRICT  OLD  COMMODORE  I. 
C.  CREIGHTON — DIFFICULTY  WITH  NATIVES — 
ARRIVAL  OF  THE  EMPRESS  THE  "  BOSTON " 
SAILS  FOR  HOME  IN  VIOLATION  OF  ORDERS. 

AFTER  a  pleasant  sail  without  variety  of  incident, 
the  best  of  possible  weather  for  the  breaking  in  of 
us  youngsters,  we  entered  the  "  Sea  of  Sargassa," 
that  wonderful  sea-weed-covered  surface  in  the 
middle  of  the  great  Atlantic,  through  which  we 
ploughed  our  way  when  nearing  the  equator  to- 
wards our  destined  cruising-ground — the  coast  of 
Brazil. 

As  we  approached  the  imaginary  "  line "  that 
divides  the  Northern  from  the  Southern  Hemisphere, 
we  greenhorns  were  told  of  the  ordeal  to  which,  at 
the  hands  of  the  mystic  crew  of  Neptune  and  his 
staff,  all  must  submit  who  cross  the  equator  for  the 
first  time — an  event  looked  forward  to  with  eager- 
ness, as  to  a  grand  frolic,  by  those  who  had  gone 
through  it,  but  with  quaking  and  trembling  by  the 
uninitiated. 


l6          FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

At  noon  one  fair  day  when  the  observation  of  the 
sun  by  the  sailing-master  indicated  that  we  would 
cross  the  equator  in  a  few  hours  (at  4.30  p.  m., 
longitude  22°  40'  W),  all  hands  were  startled  by  a 
hail,  seemingly  from  under  our  bows,  "  Ship  a-hoy !  " 
"  Hello  !  "  was  the  reply  of  the  officer  of  the  deck: 
to  which  came  back  another  hail,  "  Heave  to  !  His 
Maritime  Majesty  Nept,une  and  his  staff  desire  to 
visit  the  ship  to  inspect  her  for  new-comers  into  his 
dominions  for  the  purpose  of  initiation."  "  Cer- 
tainly," cried  our  captain,  taking  the  trumpet  from 
the  officer  of  the  deck,  "  I  will  be  glad  to  meet  and 
receive  His  Majesty  at  the  gangway  with  a  dozen  of 
the  cats  on  the  bare  back  !  "  A  gentle  announcement 
to  which  we  heard  no  distinct  response ;  but  from 
the  subdued  talking  under  the  top-gallant  forecastle, 
we  could  but  infer  that  the  reply  of  the  captain 
was  altogether  so  distasteful  to  His  Majesty  as  to 
cause  him  to  forego  the  contemplated  visit,  since 
we  heard  no  more  of  him  or  his  staff. 

The  mystic  crew  were  some  of  our  men  dressed 
up  in  swabs  and  thrum-mats  to  represent  Neptune, 
his  wife,  and  accompanying  Tritons,  armed  with 
tar  brush  and  hoop-iron  razors  for  the  initiation. 
Their  non-appearance  was  much  to  the  disappoint- 
ment of  those  who  had  themselves  undergone  such 
ceremonies,  but  entirely  to  the  gratification  of  us 
youngsters  and  a  number  of  landsmen,  as  they  would 
certainly  have  fared  badly  at  the  hands  of  the  Tritons, 
who  with  their  tar  lather  and  rusty  hoop-iron  razors 
were  always  inclined  to  be  rather  rough  in  the  shav- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          1 7 

ing  which  had  to  be  endured  as  part  of  the  cere- 
mony. 

It  was,  indeed,  a  custom  that  should  be  "  more 
honored  in  the  breach  than  in  the  observance,"  for 
sometimes  it  grows  into  such  license  as  to  cause 
serious  disturbance. 

Our  captain,  doubtless,  had  some  experience  on 
other  occasions  as  that  which  was  in  his  mind 
when  he  gave  his  reply  to  the  would-be  revelers, 
and  now  we  could  calmly  turn  our  thoughts  from 
Neptune  and  his  minions  to  the  new  life  we  were  to 
live  in  another  hemisphere. 

Now  that  Ursa  Major  and  the  polar  star  had 
declined  below  the  northern  horizon,  the  Southern 
Cross  and  the  Magellanic  clouds  were  looming  up 
above  the  southern,  and  a  new  world  was  opening 
to  us. 

The  seasons  reversed,  we  had  just  left  the  region 
of  winter  in  December  and  January,  and  here  those 
were  the  summer  months.  Up  to  near  the  equator 
the  sun  was  south  of  us  ;  now  we  looked  for  it  to 
the  north,  although  we  would  rather  feel  less  of  its 
heat  in  this  torrid  region  in  the  times  of  calms  and 
heated  climate, — particularly  with  the  prospect  of 
having  a  long  passage  before  us,  held  back  as  we 
were  by  calms  and  light,  baffling  zephyrs. 

We  learned  from  the  older  officers  that  on  reach- 
ing the  southeast  trades  they  would  carry  us 
smoothly  and  speedily  to  our  head-quarters  in  the 
harbor  of  Rio  de  Janeiro. 

Youth  is  ever  buoyant  with  hope,  and  even  being 


1 8          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

put  upon  allowance  of  water  was  not  enough  to 
dry  up  the  ardor  of  young  midshipmen  on  their  first 
cruise  at  sea,  so  our  spirits  were  not  in  the  least 
affected  by  the  long  delay  in  the  coming  of  pro- 
pitious winds  to  waft  us  to  our  port. 

At  last  indications  of  the  sighed-for  S.  E.  trades 
were  noticed  hovering  over  and  along  the  horizon 
to  the  southward  and  eastward.  Our  passage  had, 
already,  been  unusually  long,  and  when  the  drinking 
water  began  to  run  short  and  means  were  adopted 
to  prevent  the  diminution  in  daily  allowance,  by 
spreading  sails  and  awnings  with  hose  attached  lead- 
ing to  the  tank,  to  catch  the  rain  that  sometimes 
fell  in  "  angel  visits,  few  and  far  between/'  it  was 
reasonable  that  the  older  heads  should  begin  to 
show  anxiety  and  grow  impatient  for  the  fair  winds 
always  expected  thereabouts. 

Still  we  youngsters,  always  light-hearted,  did  not 
take  it  quite  so  seriously,  albeit  there  were  some 
wry  faces  and  tip-tilted  noses  at  the  stringy  water 
which  we  strained  through  our  teeth,  its  odors  ap- 
proaching those  of  sulphuretted  hydrogen,  for 
which  rain-water  so  caught  would  be  a  delicious 
substitute.  Our  allowance  "  'fore  and  aft  "  was  but  a 
gallon  a  day  per  man,  to  serve  for  cooking,  drink- 
ing and  washing,  and  it  had  to  be  husbanded  until 
we  struck  the  trades,  which,  as  is  known  to  mariners, 
when  fairly  filling  the  sails  would  take  us  to  port 
without  fail.  Our  one  thought  was,  this  wind  will 
be  welcomed  when  it  does  come,  and  "  all  the  wel- 
comer  early,"  for  the  midshipmen's  stores  were  not 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          19 

supplied  for  a  long  passage,  economy  having  been 
the  order  of  the  day  when  we  sailed,  we  not  wish- 
ing to  have  too  much  "  dead  horse  "  (as  our  ad- 
vanced pay  is  called)  to  work  out ;  and  on  this 
account  the  provisions  of  the  mess  were  running  so 
short  that  we  had  recourse  to  ship's  rations  to  eke 
out  our  stores,  the  hard  tack  being  rather  animated, 
the  "  salt  junk  "  a  little  rusty,  the  salt  pork  a  wee  bit 
rancid,  and  the  butter  tasting  of  the  oak  of  the  keg. 

But  what  of  that !  what  cared  we,  having  good 
appetites,  which  were  not  sharpened,  by  the  by,  by 
the  tough  yarns  related  by  the  oldsters  of  the 
mess,  who,  according  to  their  accounts,  have  (in  the 
larger  experience  of  two  cruises  to  our  one)  seen 
by  far  greater  hardships,  and  like  all  who  go  down 
to  the  sea  in  great  ships,  they  see  the  wonders  of 
the  world. 

Our  mess-boy,  dignified  by  the  title  of  steward, 
because  of  his  cunning  in  the  divine  art,  was  a  gem 
of  a  chef,  and  we  verily  believed  he  could  make 
soup  of  the  sole  of  an  old  shoe  ;  the  lively  bread 
was  made  a  palatable  dish,  and  the  life  therein  over- 
come by  soaking  in  boiling-water,  or  frying  in  fat- 
pork,  or  by  baking  in  the  hot  oven.  The  "  salt 
junk  "  was  disguised  by  making  it  a  savory  hash, 
and  even  the  pork,  if  not  too  rancid,  was  delicious 
to  a  hungry  reefer  when  covering  a  good  cake  of 
hard  tack  and  topped  by  a  coat  of  red-pepper ! 

But  Jim  Anderson  was  capricious,  and  had  his 
favorites  amongst  the  middies,  who  came  in  for  the 
largest  share  of  his  "tid-bits." 


20          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

As  the  "  indications  "  of  change  in  the  weather 
grew  to  be  almost  a  certainty  our  spirits  arose 
accordingly,  some  "  cats'paws  "  approached  the  ship, 
and  then  a  veritable  breeze  filled  the  sails,  and  we 
braced  up  on  the  larboard  tack  as  the  breeze  was 
still  too  much  to  the  southward  to  permit  running 
free  ;  and  we  were  soon  to  be  bowling  along  at  a 
good  rate  with  checked  braces  and  flowing  sheets, 
as  we  learned  by  listening  to  the  comments  of  the 
wise  oldsters,  who  seemed  to  know  everything,  and, 
rilled  with  admiration  of  their  attainments,  we 
copied  after  them  in  discussing  the  weather. 

By  the  end  of  January  steady  trade  winds  were 
at  last  met,  and,  the  ship  heading  on  her  course, 
with  pleasant  weather  and  the  hope  of  being  soon 
in  harbor,  our  crew  were  all  in  the  best  of  spirits, 
getting  the  ship  in  harbor  trim  inboard.  Our 
appearance  outboard,  although  we  had  experi- 
enced no  very  hard  weather  in  our  long  passage, 
was  altogether  weather-beaten  and  rusty,  but  the 
judicious  application  of  a  little  paint  here  and  there 
made  her  quite  presentable.  No  very  fresh  winds 
except  in  squalls  had  been  experienced  during  the 
cruise  until  we  made  the  northeast  trades,  north 
of  the  equator,  when  the  ship  made  her  fastest 
time,  bowling  off  257  miles  in  the  twenty-four  hours. 

Off  Cape  Frio  we  had  a  hard  puff  of  a  squall, 
which  reduced  the  ship  to  double-reefed  top-sails 
very  suddenly ;  and  being  on  deck  during  the 
flurry  I  had  a  good  example  of  cool  and  confident 
seamanship  in  the  officer  of  the  deck,  Lieutenant 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          21 

David  G.  Farragut,  who  (although  the  captain,  him- 
self a  thorough  sailor,  became  somewhat  excited) 
gave  his  orders  through  the  trumpet  calmly  and 
distinctly,  and,  with  no  confusion,  the  ship  in  a  little 
while  was  under  snug  sail.  Young  as  I  was,  I  was 
struck  with  admiration,  and  breathed  a  hope  that  I 
would  some  day  make  just  such  another  sailor  and 
officer — as  he  was  my  very  beau-ideal. 

On  the  6th  day  of  February,  1829,  we  made  the 
land,  and  with  the  Seabreeze  entered  the  harbor  of 
Rio  de  Janeiro  in  the  afternoon,  reaching  our  anchor- 
age by  3.30  p.  m.,  making  an  unusually  long  passage 
of  fifty-one  days,  during  which  time  I  had  learned 
practically  a  great  many  points  in  seamanship  which 
proved  of  incalculable  benefit  to  me  in  my  subse- 
quent career. 

We  found  several  English,  French,  and  Brazilian 
men-of-war  in  port,  and  interchanges  of  salutes  and 
civilities  were  in  order  for  a  couple  of  days,  after 
which  we  commenced  the  work  of  refitting  and  put- 
ting the  ship  in  order.  We  had  fitted  out  in  winter 
in  a  northern  port,  and  in  this  southern  climate  the 
lower  rigging  had  become  so  slack  that  an  entire 
refitting  was  necessary.  Indeed  we  had  found  it 
necessary  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  equator  to 
"  swifter  in  "  as  we  could  catch  the  opportunity,  so 
as  to  prevent  danger  to  the  masts  from  anything 
like  bad  weather. 

Being  in  port,  this  work  of  refitting  became  the 
general  occupation  of  all  hands ;  and  our  second- 
lieutenant,  my  namesake,  asked  me  to  go  on  shore 


22          FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

with  him  to  camp  out  on  Rat  Island,  a  barren 
rock  further  in  the  harbor,  where  all  the  gun-gear 
was  to  be  taken  to  be  refitted,  blocks  painted, 
etc.,  and  there  we  lived  under  a  maintopsail  sup- 
ported by  stun'sail  booms,  as  a  tent,  for  a  couple 
of  weeks,  our  meals  being  sent  to  us  from  our  mess 
on  board  ship  ;  and  we  were  glad,  when  our  experi- 
ence was  over,  to  return  to  our  comfortable  quarters 
on  board. 

This  refitting  of  the  ship  occupied  a  couple  of 
months,  when  we  were  again  ready  for  sea.  About 
a  week  before  sailing  the  U.  S.  frigate  "  Guerriere  " 
and  the  sloop-of-war  "  St.  Louis  "  (a  sister-ship  to 
the  "  Vandalia  ")  came  in,  bound  to  the  Pacific,  and 
from  the  "St.  Louis"  we  received  a  lieutenant  of 
marines,  Richard  Douglas — an  elderly  gentleman, 
a  veritable  polyglot — and  our  first-lieutenant  Down- 
ing being  transferred  to  the  "  Guerriere, "  my  friend 
Joshua  R.  Sands  became  our  first-lieutenant,  at 
which  I  was,  indeed,  well  pleased. 

This  stay  in  port  after  our  long  voyage  out  was 
simply  delightful.  The  noble  and  magnificent  har- 
bor, studded  with  islands,  the  grand  mountain 
scenery  surrounding  it,  was  a  picture  most  gratifying 
to  the  sight  after  the  daily  iteration  of  unbroken 
horizon  to  which  we  had  been  so  recently,  and  for 
so  long  a  period,  treated;  and  as  we  stood  on  deck, 
noting  the  most  conspicuous  points  in  view,  Lord 
Hood's  Nose,  Organ  Mountains  and  the  Sugar  Loaf, 
always  green  with  tropical  fruits  and  plants,  it  was 
almost  bewitching  to  us  youngsters,  and  charmed 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          23 

our  senses,  taste  and  sight,  to  a  degree  amounting  for 
the  while  to  perfect  happiness. 

We  felt  as  though  that  was  something  like  paradise. 
From  "  salt  junk"  and  "hard  tack"  to  oranges  and 
bananas,  (just  think  of  it !  It  was  enough  to  turn 
wiser  heads  than  ours)  with  the  scenery  to  charm 
the  more  practical,  we  enjoyed  ourselves  hugely. 

At  last  a  break  was  made  in  our  ease  and  com- 
fort, and  we  sailed  to  join  the  Commodore  at 
Montevideo,  with  the  certainty  of  returning  with  re- 
newed interest  to  this  beautiful  harbor,  to  take  up 
again  and  extend  our  explorations  among  the  many 
islands  in  the  bay. 

After  a  goodly  share  of  squally  weather  and  head 
winds,  in  beating  against  which  we  became  familiar 
with  new  and  difficult  evolutions  in  seamanship,  we 
came  to  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  Montevideo,  Rio 
de  la  Plata — where  we  found  the  flagship,  U.  S. 
frigate  "  Hudson,"  bearing  the  broad  pennant  of 
Commodore  John  Orde  Creighton.  His  reputation 
as  a  disciplinarian  was  that  of  being  so  strict  as  to 
rate  him  a  martinet  and  gave  token  of  but  little 
idleness  at  anchor  while  with  him.  The  youngsters  of 
the  other  ships  stood  in  especial  awe  of  him.  He 
was  acknowledged  to  be  a  superior  sailor  and  a 
highly-cultivated  and  accomplished  officer,  some- 
times taking  the  trumpet  himself  from  the  officer 
of  the  deck  and  directing  some  of  the  more  difficult 
evolutions — such  as  "  tacking  ship  and  reefing  top- 
sails at  the  same  time,"  "  tacking  ship,  hauling  all 
the  yards  at  once,"  in  which  one  must  know  his 


24          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

ship  well  to  perform  them  successfully  ;  and  he  had, 
indeed,  a  magnificent  ship  under  his  command. 
She  was  built  for  the  Greeks,  by  Henry  Eckford,  of 
New  York,  being  a  sister-ship  of  the  Brazilian  frig- 
ate "ITmperatrice"  built  by  the  same  constructor; 
but  Greece  not  being  able  to  comply  with  her  con- 
tract, our  government  bought  her  and  named  her 
the  "  Hudson,"  and  this  was  her  first  cruise. 

The  Commodore  was  a  strict  constructionist,  and 
required  all  orders  and  regulations  to  be  carried  out 
literally,  according  to  his  interpretation  of  them. 
He  would  muster  his  midshipmen  in  full-dress  uni- 
form, and  cause  the  ship's  tailor  to  cut  off  some 
inches  of  their  coat-tails  because  the  regulations  re- 
quired "  short-tail  coats  "  in  full  dress — and  he  al- 
lowed not  the  slightest  license  of  artistic  taste  to 
the  tailor  in  his  idea  of  the  "  fitness  of  things  "  to  the 
human  form.  Tall  men  and  short  men,  lean  and  fat, 
all  must  have  short-tail  coats. 

When  "all  hands"  were  called  on  the  flagship, 
his  midshipmen  were  required  to  be  at  their  stations 
in  the  tops  or  elsewhere  in  full  tog — cocked  hats, 
swords  or  dirks,  and  must  be  trig  and  neat  in  person. 
On  one  occasion  one  of  the  midshipmen,  a  brusque, 
burly  youngster,  who  stammered  in  his  speech,  was 
going  aloft  to  his  station  in  the  maintop,  when  the 
Commodore's  keen  eye  espied  a  hole  in  his  coat 
under  the  arms.  Hailing  the  main  rigging  he  asked 
in  loud,  sharp  tone,  why  he  was  going  aloft  with  his 
coat  torn  under  the  arms  ;  the  stammering  quick 
reply  of  the  reefer:  "Well,  Co-commodore,  what's 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          25 

a  fe-fellow  to  do  when  t'other  coat's  torn  ?  "  brought 
as  quickly  its  well-merited  punishment. 

Having  heard  the  reply,  of  course  I  must  in  duty 
make  a  note  of  it  to  satisfy  the  shade  of  Burns. 

"  If  there's  a  hole  in  a'  your  coats 

I  rede  you  tent  it, 
A  chiel's  amang  ye  takin'  notes, 
And  faith  he'll  prent  it." 

We  would  have  been  off  for  Buenos  Ayres,  but 
fora  "  pampero  "  which  suddenly  sprang  up,  as  they 
always  do,  without  other  premonition  than  a  sharp 
fall  of  the  barometer  and  a  speck  of  cloud  in  the 
southwest,  the  direction  of  the  vast  pampas  to  the 
southward  of  the  Rio  de  la  Plata. 

It  was  tremendous  in  its  force  for  a  short  time, 
reducing  the  ship  to  low  spars,  yards  pointed  to  the 
wind  and  long  scope  of  chain,  with  a  sheet-anchor 
down  to  make  secure  our  anchorage. 

The  force  of  the  wind  blew  the  water  out  of  the 
river,  so  that  vessels  of  greater  draft  of  water  had  to 
wait  for  the  reflux  of  tide  before  venturing  the  navi- 
gation of  the  stream  to  Buenos  Ayres  among  the 
many  shoals  that  lie  in  the  channel. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  May  1st  we  weighed 
anchor  and  stood  up  the  river  for  Buenos  Ayres,  in 
charge  of  a  pilot,  anchoring  at  night  and  in  foggy 
weather,  as  the  channel  of  this,  the  widest  of  river 
mouths,  is  tortuous  among  its  many  shoals.  Reach- 
ing our  destination  on  the  4th  of  May,  we  anchored 
in  the  Roads,  about  seven  miles  distant  from  the 


26          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

shore,  where  we  found  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Boston,"  Master 
Commandant  Beekman  V.  Hoffman,  commanding, 
which  vessel  we  were  sent  out  to  relieve. 

The  meeting  of  vessels  from  home,  in  distant 
parts  of  the  world,  always  gives  rise  to  a  happy 
excitement,  and  our  vessel  was  accordingly  heartily 
welcomed. 

The  "  Boston  "  had  been  from  home  so  long  that 
we  found  no  "  youngsters  "  on  board,  her  steerage 
officers  being  men  grown,  and  mostly  pretty  rough 
cases,  who  took  us  in  hand  to  "put  us  through  "  as 
they  intimated.  We  found,  upon  our  visit  to  them,  a 
demijohn  (Strawboots,  they  called  it),  filled  with 
ship's  whisky,  standing  upon  the  steerage  mess- 
table,  flanked  by  hard  biscuit,  by  way  of  welcome, 
and  so  potent  an  influence  did  it  exert  upon  the  en- 
tertainment as  to  completely  break  down  the  sober 
habits  to  which  we  were  accustomed  on  our  own 
vessel,  and  they  returned  us  to  our  ship  in  a  far  more 
jolly  mood  than  when  we  left  her. 

The  ship  looked  "  old-timey  "  to  us  ;  the  uniforms 
of  the  officers  were  very  rusty;  the  officers  them- 
selves were  older  looking  than  ours ;  their  mess 
furniture  had  to  us  the  appearance  of  time-worn 
crockery.  But  comparisons  are  odious ;  and  it 
should  be  remembered  that  ours  was  a  brand-new 
ship,  and  our  officers,  the  midshipmen  at  least,  as 
brand-new  as  could  be  sent  out,  whilst  the  Boston's 
steerage  officers  had  long  been  waiting  their  relief, 
and  had  not  cared  to  replenish  at  that  late  day  in 
their  cruise. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          2^ 

The  oldsters  told  us  of  a  dinner  they  had  given 
to  their  wardroom  officers.  Having  made  a  grand 
parade  of  being  well  provided,  they  spread  out  the 
well-burnished  covers,  borrowed  from  the  wardroom, 
as  were  the  crockery  and  the  waiters.  The  guests, 
when  the  covers  were  raised,  saw  before  them  "  hard 
tack  "  and  "  salt  junk  "  in  various  well-devised  dishes, 
the  invention  of  the  combined  talents  of  their  cook 
and  steward,  making  thus  manifest  to  their  next  door 
neighbors  their  straitened  circumstances.  Their 
main  resource,  they  said,  was  "  John  Barleycorn  in 
his  strawboots,"  and  their  novel  entertainment  had 
the  desired  effect  of  bringing  more  frequent  invita- 
tions to  dine  at  the  more  bountifully  supplied  ward- 
room mess-table. 

They  Avere  all  eager,  and  no  wonder,  to  be  off 
for  home,  and  chafed  a  good  deal  at  their  detention 
by  the  Commodore,  which  they  suspected  was  caused 
by  a  desire  on  his  part  to  make  a  grand  entree  into 
Rio  de  Janeiro  with  his  squadron  of  three  ves- 
sels. In  a  couple  of  weeks  they  sailed  to  join  the 
flagship  at  Montevideo,  while  we  weighed  anchor 
and  stood  further  in  towards  the  city,  to  have  more 
convenient  communication  with  the  shore,  anchor- 
ing six  miles  from  shore  in  about  three  fathoms 
water. 

The  river  being  too  shoal  to  venture  closer,  it  was 
very  inconvenient,  even  the  boats  of  the  ship  could 
not  get  to  the  shore,  and  passengers,  etc.,  had  to  be 
transferred  from  them  to  the  land  in  carts  lined  with 
rawhides,  and  dragged  by  ponies  through  the  shoal 


28    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

water  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  there  being  no  wharf 
or  other  landing. 

At  this  time  the  country  was  in  a  very  unsettled 
state.  General  Manuel  de  Rosas,  leader  of  the 
"  Gauchos  "  was  in  possession  of  the  government, 
and  the  city  was  in  a  state  of  siege.  Many  murders 
were  committed  every  night,  and  it  was  exceedingly 
dangerous  to  appear  in  the  streets  alone  or  un- 
armed after  nightfall.  It  was  deemed  safer  to  walk 
in  the  middle  of  the  street  at  all  times,  to  prevent 
surprise  at  the  corners  or  crossings  ;  as  I  heard  one 
old  officer  remark,  it  was  necessary  "  to  guard  against 
all  precautions." 

Our  shore-visiting  was  not  very  frequent,  as  the 
long  distance  from  the  ship  to  shore  involved  a 
longer  stay  in  the  city,  and  consequent  increase 
in  expense,  and  a  midshipman's  exchequer  was 
always  a  powerful  preventive  of  such  indulgences. 

About  a  week  after  the  departure  of  the  "  Bos- 
ton "  we  were  under  weigh,  also,  to  join  the  flagship 
at  Montevideo,  arriving  there  on  the  3Oth  of  May, 
rinding  the  "Hudson"  and  the  "Boston"  at 
anchor,  and  Lieutenant  Gardner  and  Midshipman 
Joseph  F.  Green  were  transferred  to  the  "  Hudson." 

On  the  2d  of  June  we  sailed  from  Montevideo  in 
company  with  the  flagship  and  the  "  Boston,"  and 
after  being  at  sea  together  cruising  for  five  days,  the 
morning  of  the  sixth  day  broke  to  show  us  that  the 
"  Boston  "  was  missing — having  parted  company  in 
the  night,  sailing  off  for  home  without  leave-taking 
or  permission,  thus  depriving  the  Commodore  of  the 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          29 

display  and  grand  entrde,  into  Rio,  as  had  been  con- 
templated by  him.  This  was  an  act  of  insubordi- 
nation which  brought  trouble  upon  the  captain  of 
the  deserting  vessel,  and  eventually  caused  many 
changes  of  officers  in  the  squadron  on  the  coast  of 
Brazil,  their  presence  being  required  as  witnesses 
when  the  court-martial  was  convened  to  examine 
into  and  act  upon  the  charges  preferred. 

On  the  evening  of  the  nth  of  June  this  small 
squadron  of  ours  anchored  off  the  harbor  of  Rio, 
the  sea-breeze  failing  and  falling  calm,  and  there 
we  waited  until  the  coining  of  the  morning's  breeze 
to  take  us  into  port,  and  later  in  the  following  day 
we  were  moored  in  our  usual  berth. 

In  a  few  days  the  harbor  was  gay  with  the  flags 
of  the  different  men-of-war  and  noisy  with  salut- 
ing and  returning  salutes  in  the  interchange  of 
civilities. 

One  morning,  being  officer  of  the  market  boat, 
when  working  in  alongside  of  the  slip  of  the  Palace 
landing,  I  observed  a  squabble  in  the  bows  of  the 
boat,  and  saw  blood  upon  the  white  trousers  of 
our  bow-oarsman  who,  in  getting  us  into  a  berth  to 
await  the  return  of  the  stewards  with  their  market- 
ing, had  pushed  a  Portuguese  merchantman's  boat 
with  his  boat-hook,  when  its  keeper  drew  his  knife 
and  stabbed  him.  My  boat's-crew  jumped  ashore 
to  capture  the  man  who  did  the  stabbing,  and  a 
cry  was  immediately  raised  by  the  sentinel  for  the 
guard,  who  came  double-quick  to  the  scene.  My 
men,  being  unarmed,  seized  oars  and  boat-hooks 


30          FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

to  make  fight,  when  I  got  between  the  belligerents 
and  succeeded  in  getting  my  men  into  their  boat 
and  shoved  off,  having  in  the  meantime  seized  the 
man  and  passed  him  into  the  "Hudson's"  boat. 
One  of  my  men  seized  the  musket  of  the  sentinel, 
and  threw  it  overboard.  Fortunately  neither  party 
used  arms,  I,  having  wholly  forgotten  the  long 
uniform  dirk  hanging  at  my  side,  did  not  use  it,  and 
the  sergeant  of  the  guard  displayed  great  forbear- 
ance, or  there  would  have  been  more  blood  shed, 
and  it  would  have  been  the  worse  for  us,  outnum- 
bered as  we  would  have  been  by  armed  soldiers. 

I  succeeded  in  getting  all  my  men  and  shoved 
off,  when  the  stewards  returned,  to  find,  to  my 
disappointment,  that  the  officer  of  the  "  Hud- 
son's "  boat  had  permitted  the  Portuguese  to 
escape ;  for  which  /  received  a  reprimand  from 
the  first-lieutenant  when  I  reported  the  circum- 
stances of  the  fracas,  he  saying  that  he  would  have 
seen  the  man  punished  as  he  deserved.  Our  man 
was  not  long  on  the  sick-list,  as  it  was  only  a  flesh 
wound  he  had  received  in  the  thigh. 

We  had  a  stay  of  six  weeks  in  port  this  time,  and 
it  was  not  until  the  2Oth  of  July  that  we  sailed 
again  for  Montevideo  and  Buenos  Ayres,  leaving 
the  flagship  in  port.  On  the  5th  of  August  we 
reached  our  destination,  and  after  a  month's  sojourn 
in  the  Rio  de  la  Plata  we  sailed  for  Rio,  touching 
for  a  few  days  at  Montevideo  and  St.  Catherines, 
without  much  to  entertain  or  interest  us,  and  were 
back  at  our  old  anchorage  in  the  harbor  of  Rio  on 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          31 

the  3d  of  October,  where  we  found  ours  the  only 
United  States  vessel  of  war,  the  flagship  having 
sailed  for  another  cruising-ground. 

On  the  loth  of  October  the  U.  S.  sloop-of-war 
"  Natchez,"  Captain  Claxton,  arrived,  flying  the 
broad  pennant  of  Commodore  Stephen  .D.  Cassin. 
Evidently  something  was  up,  and  doubtless  the 
desertion  of  the  "  Boston "  had  something  to  do 
with  it. 

On  the  1 7th  of  October,  we  found  a  change  of 
incident  from  ordinary  squadron  matters — several 
vessels-of-war  were  reported  in  sight  off  the  harbor 
with  Brazilian  colors,  and  pretty  soon  we  saw  the 
Emperor  of  Brazil  start  out  in  a  steamer  to  meet 
his  Empress,  who  had  been  expected.  She  was  on 
board  of  one  of  the  incoming  vessels  with  her 
daughter  Maria  da  Gloria,  the  Queen  of  Portugal. 

As  they  entered  the  harbor  the  several  fleets  of 
the  different  nations  at  anchor  were  ablaze  with  the 
flashes  of  saluting  guns  and  gay  with  manned  yards 
and  bunting ;  and  this  saluting  was  also  kept  up 
at  the  disembarkation  of  the  Imperial  family  ;  and 
at  dusk  the  churches  of  the  city  were  brilliant  with 
an  illumination  by  lamps  attached  from  steeples  to 
bases. 

The  Brazilian  men-of-war,  also,  illuminated  at 
night,  and  kept  up  the  festivities  for  four  days ; 
creating  a  great  hubbub  in  the  harbor,  which, 
surrounded  as  it  was  by  mountains,  reverberated  the 
sound  and  multiplied  the  noise.  The  fete  on  shore 
was  most  brilliant. 


32          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

I  da  not  know  that  I  ever  saw  greater  expenditure 
of  powder  in  compliments  than  on  these  occasions 
in  the  harbor  of  Rio. 

On  the.2ist  we  sailed  out,  bound  to  Bahia  in 
search  of  the  flagship,  which  we  found  at  anchor 
there.  After  a  couple  of  days'  stay  we  stood  out  to 
sea  again  on  the  5th  of  November,  and  communi- 
cating with  the  "  Natchez  "  were  soon  on  our  return 
in  company  with  that  vessel  to  Bahia.  We  reached 
that  port  on  the  24th  of  the  month,  and  the  next 
day  at  noon  the  "  Natchez  "  came  in  and  anchored, 
the  two  Commodores  exchanging  salutes. 

It  was  then  learned  that  Commodore  Cassin  had 
come  out  to  relieve  our  former  Commodore,  and 
the  change  in  flag  officers  was  not  the  only  change 
to  take  place.  On  the  2d  of  December  Midshipman 
William  R.  Taylor  was  transferred  from  the  "  Hud- 
son," and  Midshipmen  White  and  Berryman  from 
the  "  Natchez,"  to  our  ship ;  Midshipman  De 
Camp  leaving  us  for  the  "  Hudson,"  and  Hurst  and 
William  J.  Jenkins  going  to  the  "  Natchez." 

Assistant-Surgeon  Hunter  of  the  "  Vandalia " 
exchanged  with  Assistant-Surgeon  Spencer  of  the 
"  Natchez." 

On  the  6th  of  December  the  Commodores  ex- 
changed  ships,  Creighton  hoisting  his  blue  pennant 
on  the  "  Natchez,"  and  Cassin  his  red  pennant  on 
the  "  Hudson."  On  the  8th  the  "  Natchez  "  left 
port,  homeward  bound,  our  ship  and  the  "  Hudson** 
cheering  her  as  she  passed  us — the  flag-ships  ex- 
changing salutes. 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          33 

We  sailed  again  for  Rio  on  the  I  ith,  arriving  there 
on  the  i6th,  the  "  Hudson"  coming  in  a  few  days 
later.  On  the  22d,  Lieutenant  William  H.  Ken- 
non  reported  on  board  for  duty,  having  arrived  out 
on  a  merchant-vessel,  and  on  the  27th,  Lieutenant  D. 
G.  Farragut  was  detached  from  the  ship  to  return  to 
the  United  States.  All  these  changes  were  in  con- 
sequence of  the  escapade  of  the  "  Boston  " — the 
officers  going  home  being  witnesses  required  in  the 
trial  of  Captain  Hoffman  of  that  ship. 
3 


CHAPTER  IV. 

DUEL  BETWEEN   MIDSHIPMEN   McCLUNG  AND   HIN- 

TON — MCCLUNG'S  PECULIARITIES — QUARREL  BE- 
TWEEN LIEUTENANT  JOSHUA  R.  SANDS  AND  DR. 
BASSETT,  RESULTING  IN  A  DUEL  IN  WHICH 
BASSETT  WAS  KILLED  AT  THE  FIRST  SHOT- 
PRESIDENT  JACKSON'S  RECEPTION  OF  LIEUT. 

SANDS  AND  COMMENT  ON  HIS  DUEL — ACCES- 
SION OF  WILLIAM  IV.  TO  THE  ENGLISH  THRONE 
CELEBRATED  IN  RIO — MADE  A  DECK  OFFICER 
FOR  THE  FIRST  TIME  IQTH  SEPTEMBER,  1830. 

AT  the  opening  of  the  new  year,  1830,  we  were 
ordered  off  on  another  cruise  to  Buenos  Ayres  and 
Montevideo,  and  made  a  stay  of  three  months  in 
those  waters  without  noting  anything  of  particular 
interest,  after  which  time  we  sailed  again  for  Rio, 
where  we  made  our  reappearance  on  the  25th  of 
April,  and  were  given  two  months'  rest  and  amuse- 
ment in  port.  We  made  another  trip  to  the  south- 
ward again  in  June,  returning  in  July  to  the  north, 
arriving  off  the  Harbor  of  Rio  in  the  evening  after 
sunset,  and  as  the  sea-breeze  held  out  we  ran  in  at 
midnight  and  anchored  inside  at  I  a.m. 

It  was  a  standing  order  of  the  Brazilian  officials 
34 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          3$ 

that  no  vessels  should  be  permitted  to  pass  Fort 
Santa  Cruz  after  sunset,  and  as  we  came  bowling 
along  a  hail  from  the  Fort  ordered  us  to  "  let  go  our 
anchor !  "  and  our  first-lieutenant  politely  re- 
sponded "  Aye,  aye  !  "  but  stood  on  out  of  hearing 
before  we  anchored,  by  which  time  we  were  well 
inside  the  harbor. 

It  was  on  one  of  these  frequent  cruisings  to  the 
River  La  Plata  that  an  affair  which  had  been  bub- 
bling up  in  the  larboard  steerage  between  a  couple  of 
midshipmen,  culminated  in  a  duel  between  Midship- 
men Alexander  M.  McClung  and  Addison  C.  Hinton, 
under  the  walls  of  Montevideo.  They  managed  to 
steal  ashore  one  morning  early,  in  the  market-boat, 
shortly  after  our  arrival  in  port,  and,  after  an  ex- 
change of  shots,  returned  to  the  ship  in  the  same 
boat  ;  Hinton  being  wounded  in  the  thumb  of  the 
right  hand  and  McClung  receiving  a  painful  flesh- 
wound  in  the  right  arm.  The  ball  entered  just  above 
the  wrist,  and  was  extracted  from  under  the  skin 
midway  between  the  elbow  and  the  shoulder,  dis- 
abling that  arm  for  the  time,  or  there  would  have 
been  another  duel  between  him  and  Midshipman  J. 
T.  Williams  which  had  been  arranged. 

The  ammunition  used  in  this  duel  had  been  ob- 
tained on  shore  by  the  belligerents,  and,  being  of 
the  inferior  quality  with  which  the  natives  did  their 
fighting — contract  powder — was  the  safety  of  the 
party,  the  shots  made  being  such  as  would  have 
done  more  execution  had  the  powder  possessed 
more  force. 


36          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

McClung  was  what  is  known  as  a  "  regular  fire- 
eater.'*  He  entered  the  service  under  the  impres- 
sion that  to  make  a  good  record  in  the  navy  it  was 
necessary  to  fight  one's  way  through  it,  and  his  con- 
duct at  all  times  was  in  perfect  accord  with  his  be- 
lief in  that  regard,  and  showed  that  he  had  resolved 
to  carry  it  out. 

At  heart  he  was,  in  the  main,  a  brave,  good  fellow, 
but  fully  imbued  with  his  mistaken  idea,  the  natural 
outcome  of  early  associations  ;  for  he  belonged  to 
a  family  in  Kentucky  noted  for  their  hot-headed 
freaks  of  this  kind,  and  being  quarrelsome  he  sought 
for  opportunities  to  put  in  practise  his  pet  theory. 

Some  days  prior  to  the  duel  he  sought  a  quarrel 
with  Midshipman  Williams  who  was  quietly  seated 
on  our  side  of  the  steerage.  McClung  walked  over 
to  my  locker  and  taking  therefrom  my  long  dirk  or 
uniform  dagger,  he  put  it  into  his  bosom.  We  two 
had  always  been  on  good  terms  since  our  little  affair 
in  the  bed  at  our  Brooklyn  boarding-house,  which 
would  seem  to  warrant  the  liberty  of  going  to  my 
locker  for  anything  he  wanted,  my  locker  being  well 
furnished,  whilst  his  was  wanting  in  things  needful 
for  general  use. 

Soon  afterwards  he  went  over  to  where  Williams 
was  sitting  conversing  with  his  friends,  and  leaning 
forward  he  made  some  very  offensive  remark,  of 
which  Williams,  evidently  not  wishing  to  have  any 
difficulty,  did  not  take  notice  at  first,  but,  glancing 
up,  he  saw  the  hilt  of  the  dirk  protruding  from 
McClung's  vest,  and  he  immediately  seized  it,  and 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          37 

threw  it  up  the  hatchway  overboard  near  where  he 
was  seated  ;  but  before  the  two  could  come  to  actual 
blows  their  messmates  got  between  them,  preventing 
a  collision.  A  projected  meeting  between  them 
was,  however,  arranged  for,  and  would  have  taken 
place  but  for  the  disabling  shot  in  the  other  affair 
which  had  priority. 

McClung  carried  out  his  theory  to  its  natural  end, 
"  fighting  his  way  through  the  service,"  for  upon 
our  arrival  at  Rio  he  was  sent  to  the  United  States 
under  a  pledge  that  he  would  resign  immediately 
upon  his  arrival,  which  he  did  in  August,  1829. 

He  was  the  impersonation  of  carelessness,  and, 
when  leaving  the  ship,  carried  his  pay  in  silver- 
dollars  in  a  stocking  which  did  duty  for  a  purse, 
and  his  clothes  in  a  candle-box  in  lieu  of  a  trunk. 

I  afterward  met  him  here  in  Washington  City, when 
he  was  the  bearer  of  the  electoral  vote  of  Mississippi 
upon  the  election  of  General  Harrison  to  the  presi- 
dency, a  pleasant  duty  for  him  to  perform,  which 
secured  for  him  the  appointment  of  United  States 
Marshal  for  the  Northern  District  of  Mississippi. 
He  appeared  to  be  in  no  wise  changed,  having  had 
several  similar  "  affairs  "  in  the  West,  one  of  which 
resulted  in  the  death  of  his  antagonist.  Yet  I  have 
heard  that  he  himself  died  in  his  bed  and  not  "in 
his  boots"  as  had  been  predicted  for  him. 

On  the  26th  of  July  the  American  brig  "  Virginia  " 
arrived  with  a  number  of  officers  for  the  squadron, 
and  again  was  there  a  changing  about  between  the 
vessels.  On  the  i/th  of  August,  Surgeon  Henry 


38          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Willis  Bassett  left  the  ship  to  return  to  the  United 
States,  and  on  the  22d,  Lieutenant  Joshua  R.  Sands 
and  Surgeon  William  Johnston  left  the  ship  to  re- 
turn to  the  United  States,  in  the  American  brig 
"  Thule." 

All  these  latter  changes  were  in  consequence  of  an 
unfortunate  affair,  originating  in  a  misunderstanding 
amongst  the  wardroom  officers.  For  some  time 
there  had  been  hot  blood  shown  between  Dr.  Bassett 
and  Lieutenant  Sands.  It  appeared  that  Mr.  Francis 
Markoe,  a  young  lawyer  from  Philadelphia,  at  that 
time  staying  in  Montevideo,  had  made  agreeable  ac- 
quaintances amongst  the  wardroom  officers.  They, 
thinking  to  make  him  more  comfortable  than  he  was 
on  shore,  and  at  the  same  time  themselves  enjoy  his 
pleasant  society,  invited  him,  with  the  consent  of 
the  captain,  to  live  on  board  the  "  Vandalia  "  as 
their  guest,  Dr.  Bassett  alone  objecting  to  the  invi- 
tation, of  which  objection  Mr.  Markoe  was  ignorant 
when  he  accepted  the  invitation. 

Bassett  never  lost  an  opportunity  for  the  utter- 
ance of  spiteful  and  annoying  remarks,  disturbing 
the  comfort  of  the  mess-table,  and  at  different  times 
giving  rise  to  disagreeable  scenes  and  embarrassing 
situations  in  the  wardroom.  So  marked  and  so 
often  repeated  were  they,  that  we  of  the  steerage 
plainly  saw  that  there  was  serious  trouble  brewing. 

It  grew,  at  last,  so  apparent,  that  Dr.  Bassett  was 
bent  upon  creating  a  difficulty,  that,  to  preserve  the 
discipline  of  the  ship,  he  was  ordered  to  his  room 
by  the  first-lieutenant,  Sands ;  and  thus  things  went 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  39 

on  until  matters  approached  their  climax,  and  the 
surgeon  sent  Mr.  Sands  an  invitation  to  a  hostile 
meeting,  which  he  could  not  accept,  because  of  his 
position,  without  great  breach  of  duty  and  of  dis- 
cipline. "  Charges  "  were  then  mutually  preferred, 
upon  which  courts-martial  were  convened,  and  both 
of  them  being  put  on  trial,  Sands  was  acquitted, 
whilst  Dr.  Bassett  was  found  guilty,  and  sentenced 
to  suspension  from  duty  for  six  months,  and  to  be 
dismissed  from  the  squadron. 

The  sentence  was  approved,  and  apparently  with 
the  intention  of  obeying  his  orders  home,  the  sur- 
geon took  up  his  quarters  on  shore,  whence  he  at 
once  addressed  a  challenge  to  Lieutenant  Sands,  de- 
claring that  now  he  was  detached  from  the  ship, 
there  could  be  no  question  of  discipline,  and  no  rea- 
sonable excuse  to  present  as  an  obstacle  to  a  meet- 
ing as  before  proposed,  and  Sands  felt  that  he  was 
compelled  to  accept  it. 

The  meeting  took  place  at  sunrise  the  next  morn- 
ing upon  the  beach  at  Praya  Grande,  abreast  our 
anchorage.  When  on  the  ground  Lieutenant  Sands 
asked  if  the  matter  could  not  be  settled  amicably, 
saying,  "  You,  Dr.  Bassett,  have  a  wife  and  children 
at  home  ;  I  have  no  one  to  care  for  me.  I  will  do 
anything  in  my  power,  consistent  with  my  honor,  to 
prevent  this  going  any  further."  But  the  surgeon 
protested,  and  insisted  on  the  duel  proceeding,  and 
thereupon  the  seconds  placed  them  in  position,  and 
at  the  word  they  exchanged  shots.  The  lieutenant 
stood  unhurt,  the  doctor  missing  him  and  receiv- 


40          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

ing  the  ball  of  his  adversary  just  above  the  heart. 
He  fell  and  soon  expired. 

Both  were  expert  marksmen,  and  both  had  been 
engaged  in  other  such  affairs,  and  had  often  for 
amusement  practised  at  a  mark  on  board  ship,  the 
surgeon  always  excelling  the  lieutenant  until  this 
last  sad  occasion.  We  subsequently  heard  that  upon 
his  arrival  home  Sands  had  reported  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  Navy  and  to  the  President  (General  Jackson), 
and  that  the  latter  told  him  he  was  determined  to 
stop  duelling  between  officers  and  citizens,  having 
just  dismissed  Lieutenants  Hunter,  Westcoat  and 
Burns  for  affairs  with  a  young  Philadelphia  doctor; 
but  he  remarked  that  he  would  not  interfere  between 
officers  whose  profession  was  fighting,  and  who  were 
trained  to  arms  !  So  Sands  and  Dr.  Johnston,  his 
second,  were  restored  to  duty,  the  former  afterwards 
becoming  a  rear-admiral,  and  the  latter  reaching  the 
grade  of  medical  director. 

Thus  I  lost  the  presence  on  our  ship  of  a  good 
friend  and  adviser  in  Sands,  who  was  more  like  a 
relative  than  an  ordinary  shipmate.  Just  before  we 
parted  he  called  the  gunner,  Fales,  and,  placing  me 
in  his  charge,  bade  him  make  a  sailor  and  a  good 
officer  of  me.  Fales  had  been  with  him  as  the  cox- 
swain of  his  boat  at  the  time  of  his  duel  with  the 
English  midshipman  and  in  other  affairs,  and  was 
also  present  at  this  last  sad  meeting. 

After  a  brief  cruise  off  the  coast,  in  August,  we  again 
came  into  port  at  Rio,  and  on  September /th  Captain 
Gallagher  left  for  the  United  States  as  an  additional 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          41 

witness  in  the  "  Boston  "  court-martial,  and  Lieu- 
tenant Charles  Boarman,  the  first-lieutenant  of  the 
"  Hudson,"  reported  for  temporary  command  of  our 
ship. 

Under  date  of  September  I7th,  1830,  our  log-book 
shows  in  its  terse,  concise  language  the  entry :  "  All 
the  vessels  of  war  in  the  harbor  firing  minute-guns, 
with  flags  at  half-mast  for  the  death  of  George  IV.  of 
England." 

"  Le  Roi  est  mort !  " 

On  the  day  following  is  the  entry  :  "  The  war-vessels 
saluting  with  colors  mast-headed,  in  honor  of  the 
accession  of  William  IV.  to  the  throne  of  England." 

"Vivele  Roi!" 

a  late  arrival  in  port  having  brought  the  information 
of  these  events. 

On  the  i Qth  day  of  September  I  signed  the  log- 
book for  the  first  time  as  officer  of  the  deck,  which 
is  quite  an  event  in  the  career  of  a  midshipman. 
The  first  step  up  from  "  youngster  "  is  to  be  made 
master's  mate  of  the  forecastle,  which  is  considered 
quite  an  honor  by  the  quarter-deck  midshipman. 
The  next  step  is  to  be  placed  in  charge  of  the  watch, 
when,  as  officer  of  the  deck,  he  can  call  the  "young 
gentlemen  "  of  the  quarter-deck  to  execute  his 
orders. 

This  month  of  September  was  fraught  with  stirring 
incidents  of  national  moment.  On  the  23d  of  Sep- 


42          FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

tember  the  French  brig  of  war  "  I'lnconstant " 
appeared  in  the  harbor,  flying  the  Tricolor  flag, 
which  the  French  admiral,  who  was  in  port,  ordered 
to  be  at  once  hauled  down,  and  sent  for  the  com- 
mander of  the  brig,  when  full  explanation  was  made, 
and  at  8  a.  m.  the  next  morning  all  the  French  vessels 
of  war  hoisted  the  "  Tricolor  "  and  saluted  it  with 
twenty-one  guns.  The  other  men-of-war,  of  every 
nationality,  in  port,  hoisted  it  at  the  fore  in  compli- 
ment, which  example  we  followed,  also,  having  been 
notified  the  previous  evening  of  the  "  Revolution  of 
France,"  which  caused  the  change  of  flags  from  white 
to  tricolor,  and  we  had  kept  the  quartermasters  at 
work  all  the  first  part  of  the  night  making  a  flag 
for  the  occasion,  as  hitherto  from  the  accession  of 
the  Bourbons  the  Tricolor  had  not  been  recognized 
among  the  flags  of  nations,  and  so  we  were  unpre- 
pared for  the  change. 

Her  mission  there  being  fulfilled  the  brig  of  war 
"I'lnconstant "  sailed  for  the  Pacific,  with  her  new 
flag,  to  inform  French  vessels  there  of  the  change 
of  affairs  at  home.  It  was  quite  a  coincidence  that 
this  was  the  vessel  that  bore  Napoleon  from  the  Isle 
of  Elba. 

Our  new  commanding  officer,  Captain  Beverly 
Kennon,  arrived  out  on  September  3Oth,  in  the 
American  ship  "States,"  as  a  passenger.  (He was 
afterwards  killed  at  Washington  by  the  explosion 
of  the  large  caliber  gun  "Peacemaker"  on  board 
of  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Princeton.")  He  was  accompanied 
by  Lieutenant  Samuel  Lockwood  for  the  "  Hudson," 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          43 

and  Mr.  Wm.  Plume  Moran,  captain's  clerk  for  this 
ship  (afterwards  the  registrar  of  the  Navy  Depart- 
ment, serving  over  forty  years  in  that  position,  which 
he  holds  at  this  day).* 

At  ii  a.  m.  I  was  sent,  as  officer  of  the  boat,  to 
convey  the  captain  to  the  ship,  of  which  he  at  once 
assumed  command,  relieving  Lieutenant  Boarman, 
who  returned  to  the  "  Hudson." 

On  the  1 2th  of  October,  in  company  with  the 
"  Hudson,"  we  got  under  way  and  stood  out  of  the 
harbor,  the  latter  bound  northward  for  the  upper 
coast,  and  our  ship  southward  for  the  river  La  Plata, 
coming  to  anchor  off  Montevideo  in  three  fathoms 
of  water  nearer  shore  than  usual,  on  the  22d  of  the 
month. 

*  Mr.  Moran  has  died  since  the  above  was  written. — F.  P.  B.  S. 


CHAPTER  V. 

CAPTAIN  BEVERLY  KENNON'S  KIND  TREATMENT  OF 
HIS  MIDSHIPMEN— THE  POLITICAL  TROUBLE  AND 
CHANGES  OF  GOVERNMENT  IN  BRAZ I L  SKETCHED — 
PERSONAL  COURAGE  OF  EMPEROR  DOM  PEDRO  I. 
HIS  ABDICATION  IN  FAVOR  OF  HIS  SON— TROUBLE 
ON  SHORE  IN  OCTOBER,  1831 — THE  REGENCY — 
BRITISH  FRIGATE  "  TRIBUNE "  ARRIVES— HER 

CAPTAIN'S     MINIATURE    FRIGATE  —  HOMEWARD 
BOUND. 

ON  the  4th  of  January,  1831,  we  got  under  way, 
bound  out  on  our  return  to  our  squadron  headquart- 
ers at  Rio,  after  the  most  pleasant  sojourn  we  have 
ever  had  at  Buenos  Ayres.  Captain  Kennon,  being 
more  of  a  society  man  than  his  predecessor,  made 
more  acquaintances  amongst  the  people  on  shore,  and 
our  wardroom  and  steerage  officers,  following  his  ex- 
ample, soon  had  quite  a  large  circle  of  agreeable 
friends.  The  captain  always  had  two  or  three  mid- 
shipmen in  his  suite  on  his  visits  ashore  and  took  great 
pride  in  introducing  us  as  "  our  future  Admirals," 
although  captain  was  the  highest  grade  in  the  ser- 
vice at  that  time,  the  title  of  commodore  being  one 
of  courtesy  given  to  flag-officers. 
44 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  45 

He  would  come  to  our  rooms  to  see  that  we 
were  comme  il  faut,  before  leaving  the  ship  to  at- 
tend parties  or  balls,  and  he  squared  our  collars  by 
"  lifts  and  braces/'  and  made  perfectly  square  bow- 
knots  of  our  neckties,  which  acts  of  graciousness  and 
interest  in  us  won  us  completely. 

How  we  did  enjoy  those  evenings  !  I  recall  one  of 
the"  Tertullias"  at  Mr.  Zimmerman's,  where  I  was 
attacked  with  vertigo  whilst  conversing  with  the 
daughter  of  the  house,  and,  endeavoring  to  reach  the 
open  air,  I  reeled  and  staggered  as  though  I  had  in- 
dulged too  freely  in  the  fine  port  and  Burgundy  our 
host  had  provided  for  our  refreshment^  But  the 
young  lady  had  a  kind  heart,  and  followed  me  to 
another  room  where  she  bathed  my  head  with 
cologne,  and  I  soon  recovered  and  made  my  way 
with  firm  step  to  the  ball-room  and  joined  in  the 
dance  to  prove  that  I  had  not  disgraced  my  ship  or 
my  polite  commanding  officer. 

Our  captain  encouraged  us  to  take  dancing  les- 
sons, and  he  also  engaged  a  teacher  of  Spanish  to 
be  on  board  for  the  cruise. 

We  reached  Rio  on  the  28th  January,  going  in  on 
the  morning  of  the  following  day  with  strong  sea- 
breeze,  and  came  to  anchor  near  our  old  berth.  Our 
cruise  up  was  made  unusually  long  by  the  baffling 
head-winds  and  bad  weather  encountered  after 
leaving  the  La  Plata. 

On  February  2d,  the  French  brig-of-war  "  1'Incon- 
stant "  came  in  on  her  return  from  the  Pacific,  her 
captain  reporting,  with  exultation,  that  he  had  car- 


46          FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

ried  royal  steering  sails  around  Cape  Horn  going 
and  coming,  and  most  loyally  he  attributed  the  good 
weather  he  had  experienced  to  the  fact  that  he  bore 
the  Tricolor  for  the  first  time  in  many  years. 

On  the  I4th  February,  Governor  A.  E.  Brown, 
the  newly-arrived  United  States  charge  d }  affaires  to 
Brazil,  visited  the  ship,  and  was  saluted  with  seven- 
teen guns  and  manned  yards.  I  afterwards  had 
the  pleasure  of  meeting  him  frequently  in  Wash- 
ington when  he  was  Commissioner  of  the  Land 
Office. 

On  the  I2thof  June,  the  "  Hudson  "got  underway 
and  stood  out,  homeward  bound,  and,  the  winds  be- 
ing light,  all  of  our  boats  were  sent  to  help  tow  her 
out  to  sea. 

On  the  3d  of  July  the  British  line-of-battle  ship, 
"  Warspite  "  stood  out  to  sea  with  the  Emperor  of 
Brazil  on  board. 

There  had  prevailed  for  a  long  time  an  under- 
current of  discontent  amongst  the  people,  stirred 
up  from  time  to  time  by  malcontents  when  good 
occasions  presented,  until  the  political  agitation 
finally  culminated  in  the  abdication  of  Dom  Pedro 
I.  in  favor  of  his  son. 

The  Prince  Regent  of  Portugal,  John  VI.,  the 
father  of  Dom  Pedro,  finding  himself  sorely  pressed 
by  his  neighbors  in  the  troublous  times  among 
the  European  nations  in  the  year  1807,  being 
threatened  with  invasion  by  Napoleon,  who  had 
resolved  upon  the  conquest  of  Portugal,  which  could 
not  resist,  created  a  regency  at  home,  and  getting 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          47 

together  his  whole  fleet,  embarked  with  the  queen 
and  royal  family,  the  favored  officials  of  the  court 
and  all  his  wealth. 

In  November  of  that  year  he  sailed  for  Brazil,  the 
largest  of  the  Portuguese  colonies,  an  empire  itself, 
and,  abandoning  his  own  country,  he  established  the 
throne  here,  and,  on  the  death  of  Queen  Dona 
Maria  I.,  became  king,  and  assumed  the  title  of 
Emperor  in  1825,  immediately  abdicating  in  favor 
of  Dom  Pedro  I.,  his  son,  a  step  to  which  he  was 
driven  by  the  conduct  of  the  arrogant  and  cormo- 
rant-like courtiers  who  had  followed  him  from  Por- 
tugal, and  who  made  his  kingdom  unpopular  by 
ignoring  the  native  Brazilians  in  the  distribution  of 
the  offices  of  the  government.  Before  any  out- 
break, however,  he  learned  that  quiet  was  restored 
in  Europe,  and,  repenting  of  his  desertion  of  the 
kingdom  of  Portugal,  he  returned  and  resumed  his 
throne  there,  after  his  abdication  in  Brazil  in  favor 
of  his  son,  who  thereupon  renounced  his  heirship  to 
the  succession  of  his  father  in  Portugal  and  elected 
to  remain  with  his  new  subjects,  adopting  their 
country  as  his  own,  declaring  himself  a  Brazilian  in 
all  things — only  a  few  of  the  Portuguese  following 
his  example. 

He  gave  them  a  constitution  similar  to  that  of 
the  United  States,  with  elective  representation,  two 
Houses  of  Congress  and  a  Cabinet, — even  with  less 
power  remaining  to  the  Emperor  than  is  enjoyed  by 
our  President.  The  Emperor  had  no  veto  power, 
and  in  appointments  to  offices  could  nominate  but 


48          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

three  candidates,  one  of  whom  was  confirmed  by  the 
Senate. 

A  constitutional  monarchy  with  an  hereditary 
emperor  made  the  foundation  for  the  grand  empire 
it  has  since  become,  by  Dom  Pedro's  large  mind 
and  wise  forethought. 

Even  this  was  not  satisfactory  to  the  native  ele- 
ment. The  Portuguese  element  was  not  entirely 
eliminated,  and  the  cry  of  "  Brazilians  for  Brazil  " 
was  often  heard  on  shore  when  we  were  there. 
The  Emperor  himself  was  not  excepted  from  the 
outcry,  and  at  a  review  in  Rio  the  crisis  came, 
when  the  brave  Emperor,  seeing  the  inevitable,  de- 
manded to  know  the  cause  of  the  discontent  which 
he  noted  around  him. 

The  reply  was  universal  along  the  line  of  the 
troops, — "  Brazilians  to  govern  Brazil !  Down  with 
the  Portuguese ! "  Seeing  the  army  also  lost  to 
him,  he  quitted  his  suite  and,  advancing  to  the 
midst  of  the  troops,  bared  his  breast,  daring  them  to 
fire  if  they  demanded  his  death. 

This  was  just  such  an  act  of  daring  as  appealed 
to  their  best  nature  and  won  their  hearts  in  the 
admiration  they  felt  for  the  man. 

But  the  government  was  too  Portuguese  for 
Brazilians,  and  all  Portuguese  were  to  be  banished — 
the  only  complaint  against  the  Emperor  being  that 
he  was  a  native  of  Portugal,  and  in  that  fact  was  swal- 
lowed up  all  the  brilliant  and  great  acts  he  had 
done  to  make  them  an  independent  and  prosperous 
people. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          49 

The  crisis  had  come.  The  Emperor  took  refuge 
on  board  of  the  "  Warspite,"  and  thence  wrote  his 
abdication  in  favor  of  his  son,  Dom  Pedro  II.,  who, 
because  of  his  youth,  had  a  Regency  to  govern  dur- 
ing his  minority,  he  being  then  but  nine  or  ten  years 
of  age. 

Dona  Maria  da  Gloria,  eldest  daughter  of  Dom 
Pedro  I.,  had  previously  become  Queen  of  Portugal 
at  the  death  of  King  John,  but  had  not  until  the 
last  year  assumed  the  throne,  as  it  had  been  con- 
tested by  a  collateral  branch. 

The  ex-Emperor  joined  his  daughter  at  the  Court 
of  Lisbon,  and  Brazil  quietly  went  on  under  the 
Regency,  with  only  occasional  up-boilings  of  the 
Portuguese  element. 

To  return  to  the  occurrences  of  that  date,  how- 
ever, I  find  it  noted  in  my  journal  that  on  the  8th 
of  October,  we  unmoored  ship  and  prepared  to 
shift  our  berth  to  be  out  of  the  line  of  firing  between 
the  belligerents  on  shore,  we  having  been  warned 
by  the  officials  there  to  move  in  case  of  a  fight. 
Matters  had  not  remained  tranquil  after  the  Regency 
took  the  reins  of  government;  disorders  and  turmoils 
constantly  occurring,  and  at  4.30  p.  m.  of  that  day 
the  troops  of  the  Regency  opened  fire  upon  several 
hundred  insurgent  soldiers  on  Isle  de  Cobras.  After 
several  rounds  of  shot  from  cannon  and  musketry 
had  been  exchanged  between  the  parties,  the 
troops  from  the  city  landed  on  the  island,  stormed 
the  fort  and  obliged  the  insurgents  to  sur- 
render, and  this  was  the  end  of  the  only  really 
4 


50          FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

serious  outbreak  since  the  establishment  of  the 
Regency. 

Occasionally  the  little  Emperor  would  appear 
upon  the  balcony  of  the  palace  to  show  himself  to 
the  people,  covered  and  almost  weighed  down  by 
huge  epaulettes.  On  the  occasions  when  I  saw 
him  he  was  always  greeted  with  uproarious  applause, 
the  people  being  seemingly  gratified  at  realizing  by 
sight  that  they  had  a  native-born  Emperor. 

In  my  journal  of  this  date  I  find  the  following 
entries  : 

11  The  British  frigate  '  Tribune  '  is  in  port  again, 
to  the  great  delight  of  us  youngsters.  Her  captain 
has  her  launch  rigged  with  very  light  canvas  to 
imitate  the  frigate,  with  royals  and  stun'sails.  As 
soon  as  their  ship  is  moored,  this  launch  is  hoisted 
out,  her  masts  stepped,  and  rigging  set  up  and 
yards  crossed  with  sails  bent  ;  false  quarter  galleries 
and  cut-water  put  on,  and  with  a  strip  of  canvas 
having  port-holes  painted  on  it  stretched  fore  and 
aft  on  her  sides,  she  appears  to  be  a  fairy  frigate. 

"  In  this  pretty  little  craft  her  captain  sails  about 
the  islands  that  are  scattered  in  the  upper  bay  and 
under  the  sterns  of  the  foreign  men-of-war;  taking 
with  him  parties  of  ladies,  amusing  himself  making 
and  taking  in  sails,  tacking  and  wearing  like  any 
large  man-of-war,  greatly  to  the  entertainment  and 
delight  of  us  who  had  sailor  proclivities. 

"  All  of  this  fancy-work  is  done  with  the  captain's 
own  money,  for  the  royal  navy  is  managed  with 
great  economy,  and  no  allowance  for  such  amuse- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          5 1 

ment  is  provided  in  her  blue-book.  Yet  such  ex- 
penditure by  the  officers  themselves  is  unobjection- 
able, the  pastime  being  useful — it  being  rather  an 
agreeable  professional  pleasure,  which  is  instruc- 
tive to  the  young  officers  and  boys  who  work  and 
man  the  little  ship.  Our  hearts  were  filled  with 
envy  whenever  we  beheld  her  gliding  about  among 
the  islands." 

Our  good  captain  made  for  us  in  Rio  some  very 
charming  acquaintances,  as  he  did  in  Buenos  Ayres 
— always  taking  some  of  us  with  him  in  his  visits. 
Amongst  these  were  the  Maxwells,  who  had  a  lovely 
home  outside  the  city,  a  coffee  plantation  and  a 
large  orange  grove  being  upon  their  grounds, 
through  which  the  young  ladies  would  take  us, 
explaining  all  that  was  novel  or  interesting  to 
us. 

In  one  of  these  visits  we  happened  upon  the 
coffee  harvest,  when  the  ripe  berries  were  spread 
upon  the  bare  ground  to  dry,  and  they  were  thrashed 
to  divest  them  of  their  hulls  and  pulp  by  manual 
exercise,  an  operation  which  is  watched  with  great 
care,  since  fair  weather  must  be  selected  and  the 
dew  must  be  avoided  at  the  gathering. 

The  furniture  in  the  Maxwells'  house  was  made  by 
American  mechanics  on  the  place,  from  rosewood 
grown  upon  their  own  grounds. 

The  Wrights  of  Baltimore,  our  consul's  family, 
were  especially  attentive  to  us,  and  we  passed  many 
delightful  evenings  at  their  home  at  Bola  Fogo  on 
the  bay,  near  the  Sugar-loaf  mountain ;  and  Miss 


52    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Valeria,  the  eldest  daughter,  yet  in  her  teens,  did 
her  best  to  entertain  us  midshipmen. 

When  I  related  this  to  my  uncle,  Major  Hook, 
on  my  return  home  to  the  United  States,  he  re- 
marked that  had  the  Wrights  known  of  my  relation- 
ship to  him  they  would  scarcely  have  been  so  polite  ; 
since  it  was  with  the  brother  of  the  consul  that  he 
had  fought  the  duel  in  which  they  were  both  so 
desperately  wounded. 

On  the  loth  day  of  October  the  U.  S.  S.  "Lex- 
ington," our  relief,  arrived,  six  days  from  Bahia,  and 
on  the  1 3th  our  ship,  homeward  bound,  was  towed 
out  of  port  by  all  the  boats  of  the  men-of-war  in 
the  harbor. 

On  the  1 8th,  some  difficulty  occurring  between 
the  captain  and  Lieutenant  Lockwood  whilst  he 
was  officer  of  the  deck  resulted  in  the  suspension 
of  the  latter,  and  the  first-lieutenant  took  charge 
of  the  deck,  sending  for  me  to  relieve  him,  accom- 
panying the  order  with  a  brand-new  deck  trumpet 
from  the  store-room. 

This  order  placed  me  in  a  very  embarrassing 
position  with  my  messmates  or,  at  least,  with  two 
of  them.  We  were  nearly  all  of  the  same  date  of 
appointment,  except  Walker,  who  was  one  year  the 
senior  in  service  to  all  of  us,  though  very  youthful 
in  appearance,  and  Stellwagen,  who  was  my  senior 
in  age,  but  of  the  same  date  of  appointment,  yet 
had  more  experience,  having  been  to  sea  before  in 
a  merchantman.  This  I  stated  to  the  first-lieu- 
tenant, but  I  was  continued  in  the  day-watch  in 


FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          53 

charge  of  the  deck,  whilst  he  took  the  night-watches 
himself. 

On  the  5th  of  November  Lieutenant  Lockwood 
was  restored  to  duty  and  took  charge  of  his  watch, 
to  my  great  relief. 

On  the  I4th  of  November  we  came  to  anchor  off 
Pernambuco  in  seven  fathoms  of  water  in  the  outer 
roads,  a  reef  extending  along  the  shore  forming  an 
inner  harbor  for  vessels  of  lighter  draft  than  we  had. 
We  sailed  on  the  i6th,  beating  off  shore  and  to  the 
northward  with  light  winds. 

'Twas  a  cheering  sound  when,  with  the  accom- 
paniment of  the  boatswain's  whistle,  the  call  was 
made  "  All  hands  !  up  anchor  for  home  1  "  The 
men  sprang  to  their  stations  with  unusual  alacrity, 
and  putting  their  whole  weight  upon  the  capstan 
bars,  kept  quick  step  to  the  music  of  fiddle  and 
fife.  The  anchor  was  up  and  on  the  bow  in  a  shorter 
time  than  ever  before  in  the  cruise. 

After  an  uneventful  trip  we  made  the  light  on 
Cape  Henry  after  dark  on  the  I5th  of  December, 
and  no  pilot  was  to  be  seen.  But  the  captain, being 
a  native  of  these  parts,  brought  the  light  to  bear 
west,  and  standing  in  anchored  in  Lynn  Haven  bay, 
passing  the  Cape  at  1 1  p.  m.,  firing  guns  and  mak- 
ing signals  for  a  pilot. 

The  purser  and  another  officer  landed  with  the  in- 
tention of  riding  over  to  Norfolk  for  a  pilot,  but 
did  not  reach  there  until  after  we  did,  for  at  1 1 
a.  m.  the  next  day  we  received  a  pilot  and  beat  up 
for  Hampton  Roads,  where  we  anchored  at  9.30  p.  m. 


54         FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

A  steamboat  took  us  in  tow  the  next  morning  to 
the  navy  yard.  The  commandant,  finding  out  that 
we  had  not  discharged  our  powder  at  the  magazine, 
ordered  the  vessel  to  return  for  that  purpose  ;  but 
on  attempting  to  weigh  anchor  in  this  strong  hold- 
ing ground  the  messenger  parted,  and  we  were 
permitted  to  remain  and  send  our  ammunition  to 
the  magazine  in  boats. 

All  the  men  whose  term  of  service  had  expired 
were  permitted  to  leave  the  ship.  The  weather  was 
bitterly  cold.  In  shifting  top-gallant  masts  in  Lynn 
Haven  Bay  the  skin  of  the  men's  hands  would  split 
with  the  frost  whilst  handling  tne  ropes,  and  none 
were  more  heartily  glad  than  they  upon  reaching 
the  end  of  the  cruise. 

The  old  "  Guerrie"re  "  from  the  Pacific,  had  got  in 
before  us,  but  being  an  older  vessel  she  suffered 
more  on  approaching  the  winter  coast  than  we  did. 

We  left  the  "  Vandalia  "  on  the  usual  leaves  of 
absence  for  our  several  homes,  taking  passage  in  one 
of  the  bay  steamers,  but  had  to  put  into  Annapolis 
on  account  of  the  ice  which  closed  the  upper  bay. 
There  we  separated  in  stages — some  bound  for 
Washington  and  those  living  to  the  northward  go- 
ing to  Baltimore. 

Now,  had  I  been  asked  at  the  end  of  this  cruise 
what  I  most  desired  or  longed  for  after  the  sup- 
posed privations  of  so  long  a  period  at  sea  my 
first  response  would  have  been  "sleep,  sleep," 
for  the  mid-watches  sorely  tried  us  youngsters  in 
the  efforts  required  to  keep  awake  on  watch.  Once 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          55 

in  the  River  La  Plata,  at  anchor,  the  officer  of 
the  deck  of  my  watch  Avent  below,  leaving  me  in 
charge.  It  was  in  the  latter  part  of  the  watch,  and  I 
was  very  drowsy,  but  persistently  walked  the  deck  in 
the  endeavor  to  keep  awake.  The  vessel,  although  at 
anchor,  had  some  rolling  motion  and  in  my  walk  I 
had  edged  towards  the  steerage  hatchway,  when,  my 
knees  taking  against  the  combings,  over  I  toppled 
and  went  head-foremost  down  the  hatchway  into  the 
steerage,  fortunately  catching  at  the  side  ropes  and 
striking  my  shoulders  on  the  ladder  in  my  descent. 
This  roused  me,  of  course,  and  I  reascended  without 
injury,  and  resumed  my  walk  wide  awake.  I  had 
gone  over  when  walking  in  my  sleep  !  The  noise 
of  my  fall  awakened  the  lieutenant  of  the  watch 
from  his  comfortable  snooze  in  an  arm-chair  in  the 
wardroom  just  in  time  to  meet  his  relief.  I  have 
always  thought  that  officers  were  too  exacting  in 
this  rule  of  requiring  growing  boys  to  keep  watch 
like  grown-up  men,  as  if  they  had  the  responsi- 
bilities of  men,  and  I  always  shut  my  eyes  to  the 
shortcomings  of  midshipmen  in  this  regard. 

Arriving  in  Washington  I  went  immediately 
to  the  home  of  my  uncle,  who  was  keeping 
bachelor's  hall  on  F.  Street,  above  the  War  Depart- 
ment, where  I  was  kindly  welcomed,  as  usual ;  and  as 
soon  as  I  could  get  into  my  trunks  and  refresh  my- 
self, I  was  on  horseback  for  a  ride  down  the  city, 
taking,  en  passant,  a  peep  into  the  window  of  the 
home  of  the  Frenches,  then  on  the  corner  of  1 3th  and 
F.  streets,  where  I  had  the  pleasure  of  doffing  my  hat 


56         FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

to  the  ladies  at  the  dining-room  window.  Seeing  a 
carnage  at  the  door  I  did  not  dismount,  being  too 
diffident  to  face  the  fire  of  an  appearance  before 
strangers  in  my  uniform  jacket,  for  a  first  visit  too. 
But  in  the  evening  I  put  in  an  appearance,  and  met 
them  all  en  famille  in  the  same  cosy  sitting-room  up- 
stairs where  I  had  passed  so  many  pleasant  hours 
with  the  girls,  the  eldest  of  whom  had  just  been 
married,  and  was  living  with  her  husband,  Mr. 
Hoban,  on  the  avenue.  I  was  greeted  just  as 
warmly  as  ever  by  the  second  sister,  who  was 
destined  to  be  my  all-in-all  in  the  future. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CRUISE  IN  THE  SLOOP-OF-WAR  "  ST.  LOUIS  "  IN  THE 
WEST  INDIES — A  DEATH  FROM  SEA-SICKNESS — 
LIEUTENANT  WARD  B.  BURNETT,  U.  S.  ARMY, 
TAKES  PASSAGE  WITH  US— VISIT  HAYTI— OFFI- 
CIAL RECEPTION — DANCE  WITH  THE  LOVELY 
NATIVES — QUADROON  GIRLS. 

I  REMAINED  but  a  short  time  with  my  uncle  in 
my  Washington  home  ;  for,  although  my  daily 
visits  to  my  friends  the  Frenches  made  my  stay  one 
of  pleasure,  my  affection  for  my  parents  prompted 
an  early  visit  to  them  in  their  western  home,  and 
having  heard  of  my  return  from  sea  they  were 
claiming  my  presence,  that  they  might  judge  of 
what  my  voyage  south  had  done  for  me.  I  re- 
mained with  them  in  Louisville  for  a  long  time, 
until  my  professional  duties  required  that  I  should 
again  be  seeking  sea-duty,  if  I  would  not  drop 
behind  my  fellows  in  experience  or  lose  an  oppor- 
tunity for  advancement. 

Shortly  after  my  return  east,  therefore,  I  obtained 
orders  to  the  sloop-of-war  "  St.  Louis"  for  a  short 
cruise  in  the  West  Indies,  reporting  for  duty  on 
board  on  the  iQth  of  September,  1832. 

57 


58          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

The  "  St.  Louis"  was  one  of  the  six  sloops-of-war 
finished  in  1828,  and  was  a  comfortable  vessel;  and 
the  short  cruise  upon  which  I  was  entering  was 
preparatory  to  my  examination  for  promotion.  I 
was  as  to  standing  and  comfort  much  better  off 
than  when  starting  out  in  the  "  Vandalia"  on  my 
first  cruise,  being  now  termed  an  "  oldster,"  as  mid- 
shipmen on  their  second  cruise  were  called  ;  and  I 
had  more  privileges,  being  master's  mate  of  the  fore- 
castle, a  position  envied  by  the  quarter-deck  mid- 
shipmen, as  the  master's  mate  had  some  responsi- 
bility as  the  immediate  assistant  of  the  officer  of 
the  deck,  being  stationed  forward  under  his  charge. 

I  was  made  signal  officer  also,  and  when  sailing 
in  squadron  was  always  excused  from  watch.  But 
we  could  not  pretend  to  enjoy  life  as  the  "  young- 
sters "  did.  The  novelty  had  worn  off  for  us,  and 
whilst  the  youngster  was  "  fresh,"  the  "  oldsters  " 
were  blasts !  Still  we  felt  our  importance  and 
ruled  the  steerage,  which  gave  us  some  interest  in 
our  surroundings. 

Commander  John  T.  Newton  was  our  command- 
ing officer,  and  our  lieutenants  were  amongst  the 
oldest  in  the  service,  three  of  them  having  been 
"  overslaughed  "  for  some  years  and  were  now  go- 
ing to  sea  for  final  trial  of  sea-service  before  coming 
up  for  promotion. 

Of  the  officers  on  that  cruise  I  recall,  besides  the 
captain  :  lieutenants,  Charles  Crowley,  John  Rut- 
ledge,  Joel  Abbot,  Charles  T.  Platt  and  George  Izard 
— all  of  whom  are  dead  ;  surgeon,  A.  A.  Adee  ;  assist- 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          59 

ant  surgeon,  Lewis  Wolfley  ;  passed  midshipmen, 
Stephen  C.  Rowan  (afterwards  vice-admiral)  ;  and 
Melancthon  Smith  (afterwards  rear-admiral),  mid- 
shipmen, B.  F.  Sands  and  A.  Ludlow  Case  (after- 
wards rear-admirals),  Montgomery  Hunt,  F.  B. 
Renshaw,  James  Doyle,  and  T.  M.  Mix. 

On  the  2d  of  October  we  hauled  out  from  the 
yard  and  getting  under  way  on  the  pth  sailed  down 
to  the  quarantine  station  of  Staten  Island,  and  a 
day  or  two  thereafter  stood  out  to  sea. 

We  had  a  very  heavy  sea  for  two  or  three  days, 
which  occasioned  the  death  of  John  Wyckoff,  a  boy, 
from  sea-sickness,  a  most  unusual  thing.  The  sur- 
geon pronounced  the  result  to  be  due  to  an  affection 
of  the  brain,  originating  in  excessive  retching,  as 
sea-sickness  of  itself,  he  assured  us,  could  not  have 
caused  death.  The  boy  was  a  bright,  handsome 
fellow,  and  this  was  his  first  voyage. 

Sailing  into  Hampton  Roads  we  took  on  board 
Lieutenant  Joseph  Smoot,  who  was  a  passenger  en 
route  to  Pensacola  to  assume  command  of  the 
schooner  "  Grampus."  On  the  2Qth  of  October,  in 
obedience  to  signal  from  the  "  Vandalia,"  the  flag- 
ship of  Commodore  T.  D.  Henley,  we  got  under 
way  for  sea. 

Off  Lynn  Haven  Bay,  Lieutenant  Ward  B.  Bur- 
nett, U.  S.  Army,  came  on  board  to  take  passage 
to  Pensacola,  under  special  permission  from  the 
Secretary  of  the  Navy.  He  had  just  graduated 
from  West  Point,  and  was  on  the  way  to  his  post, 
Fort  St.  Phillip,  on  the  Delta  of  the  Mississippi. 


60    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Subsequently,  after  resigning  from  the  army,  Bur- 
nett was  appointed  to  command  a  New  York  vol- 
unteer regiment  in  the  Mexican  war,  where  he 
distinguished  himself  by  his  gallantry,  being  the 
fortunate  recipient  of  the  diamond-mounted  snuff- 
box left  by  General  Andrew  Jackson  to  be  given  to 
the  "  bravest  officer  in  the  Mexican  war  " — the  in- 
dividual to  be  determined  by  a  commission  of  pro- 
minent officers  who  had  participated  in  that  war. 
After  much  competition  the  prize  was  awarded  to 
General  W.  B.  Burnett,  who  now,  as  I  write,  is  a 
decrepit  invalid,  seeking  to  better  himself  as  a 
lobbyist  for  claims  against  the  government. 

We  had  a  fine  passage  out,  reaching  the  harbor  of 
"  Old  Cape  Fransois,"  Island  of  St.  Domingo,  West 
Indies,  on  the  2ist  of  November.  On  the  way 
down  we  had  some  bad  weather,  and  in  one  of  the 
gales  there  was  a  good  deal  of  night  signalling  with 
the  flagship,  in  company  with  which  we  had  sailed, 
and  this  proved  of  great  interest  to  our  army  guest, 
who  was  so  charmed  with  what  he  saw  that  he  re- 
mained on  deck  with  me  to  watch  the  interchange 
of  signals. 

The  sea  was  high,  and  the  night  exceedingly  dark, 
and  to  steady  myself  I  had  to  be  lashed  to  the 
"  spanker  boom  " — an  example  which  he  followed,  to 
be  near  me,  and  witness  operations.  Being  exempt 
from  sea-sickness  he  could  enjoy  the  weird  scene  of 
a  dark  and  tempestuous  sea  lit  up  and  made  more 
grand  by  the  burning  blue-lights  and  false-fires,  and 
the  sending  up  of  sky-rockets.  *  The  glare  of  the 


FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          6l 

fireworks  on  our  vessel  made  the  darkness  a  short 
distance  from  us  appear  as  a  solid  inky  wall  ;  and  an 
instant  after  our  signal  was  made,  from  out  the 
gloom  beyond  the  spars  and  sails  of  the  flagship 
would  suddenly  appear,  tinted  with  the  color  of  the 
burning  light  of  the  answering  signal,  and  we  could 
watch  the  plunging  of  the  "  Vandalia  "  as  she  met 
the  billows,  and  see  the  moving  figures  about  her 
deck.  Whilst  filled  with  intense  excitement  and 
interest  by  the  weird  scene  that  called  to  mind  the 
stories  of  the  phantom-ship,  I  could  hear  Burnett 
exclaim  in  delight,  "  Beautiful  !  Grand  !  Magnifi- 
cent !  I  would  not  have  missed  this  exhibition  for 
a  mint  of  money,"  etc.,  and  I  was  pleased  to  have  so 
appreciative  a  companion  in  my  duties  as  signal 
officer.  The  Commodore  kept  us  busy  all  the  first 
part  of  the  night,  and  I  should  have  found  it  ex- 
ceedingly irksome  but  for  the  West  Pointer's  evident 
and  expressed  delight,  and  before  going  below  he 
thanked  me  for  the  pleasure  I  had  given  him  in  en- 
abling him  to  be  with  me  in  this  "  most  striking  sea- 
scene  !  " 

It  must  have  lingered  in  his  memory,  as  some 
years  subsequently  he  applied  to  me  to  permit  him 
to  accompany  me  as  assistant  in  the  Topographical 
party  under  my  charge  on  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey. 

On  the  23d  of  October  we  received  a  visit  from  the 
authorities  of  the  town  with  their  "  ladies,"  accom- 
panied by  the  Commodore,  and  we  saluted  with 
fifteen  guns. 

The  Haytian  officers  were  the  commandant  of  the 


62          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

town,  the  captain  of  the  port,  a  naval  officer,  and 
others,  in  full  uniform,  cocked-hats,  swords  and 
gold-headed  canes !  the  latter  being  their  official 
batons,  I  suppose. 

They  were,  in  complexion,  brown  and  copper- 
colored  ;  but  their  "  ladies  "  were  bright  quadroons, 
and  beautiful  in  face  and  form. 

They  were  received  with  all  the  honors  by  our 
captain  and  all  the  officers  in  full  uniform,  and  for  the 
delectation  of  the  beauties  of  the  party  a  dance  was 
started,  in  which  we  "  reefers  "  were  conspicuous, 
and  enjoyed  it  hugely. 

Our  captain  (a  Virginian),  somewhat  averse  to 
close  contact  with  the  colored  officials,  winced  a 
little  when  familiarly  slapped  on  the  shoulder  by 
his  brother  captain  of  the  Haytian  navy  !  It  was 
great  fun  for  us  youngsters,  for  the  "  ladies  "  were 
beautiful  and  most  graceful  in  the  waltz,  enjoying 
the  impromptu  affair  as  well  as  ourselves,  and  it 
was  the  first  entertainment  of  the  cruise. 

On  the  24th  of  November  we  were  off  again  for 
Pensacola,  and  on  the  4th  of  December  lost  sight  of 
the  "  Vandalia,"  sighting  her  to  the  northward  two 
days  afterwards  entering  Pensacola  Bay,  where  we 
were  soon  at  anchor. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

CONTINUATION  OF  ST.  LOUIS  CRUISE— DINNER 
WITH  THE  DUTCH  GOVERNOR-GENERAL  AT  ST. 
THOMAS — ARRIVE  IN  PORT,  NEW  YORK,  IN  JULY 
—JOIN  THE  NAVAL  SCHOOL  AT  NORFOLK,  VA. 
—DELIGHTFUL  TIME  THERE — OUR  REGULATION 
UNIFORM— A  MIDSHIPMAN  ON  $19  PER  MONTH 
"  POPS  THE  QUESTION  "  ! — THE  METEORIC  SHOW- 
ER OF  NOVEMBER,  1833. 

OUR  visit  to  the  Pensacola  Navy  Yard  was 
very  enjoyable,  an  uncle,  Major  Robert  M.  Sands, 
of  the  Fourth  U.  S.  Infantry,  having  married 
a  native  of  the  city  of  Pensacola,  with  extensive 
connections,  all  of  whom  vied  in  the  effort  to 
make  my  stay  agreeable  ;  and  the  attentions  my 
messmates  and  I  received  were  very  grateful  to  me 
indeed.  In  the  Navy  Yard  itself  were  pleasant 
families,  who  also  entertained  us.  Mrs.  Strong, 
wife  of  Major  Strong,  commanding  Fort  Pickins  on 
Santa  Rosa  Island,  and  the  wife  of  Captain  Lindsay, 
a  very  charming  lady,  and  also,  Mrs.  Anna  Bache,  a 
poetess,  wife  of  Dr.  Bache.  She  wrote  verses  about 
the  ship  and  its  officers,  full  of  witty  allusions,  and 
the  delightful  sociable  at  her  house  made  the  month 

c> 

glide  by  almost  imperceptibly.  On  the  gth  of  January 

63 


64         FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

1833,  with  the  flagship,  we  got  underway  and  stood 
out  to  sea,  and  on  the  I2th  made  Morro  Castle  at  the 
entrance  of  the  harbor  of  Havana,  Cuba,  and  follow- 
ing the  Commodore  we  sailed  in  and  anchored,  and 
to  our  disgust  were  put  in  quarantine,  but  before 
dark  the  authorities  released  us  and  gave  us  "pra- 
tique" The  "  Grampus  "  was  in  port  also. 

During  the  month  of  February  we  were  cruising 
between  Havana,  Key  West,  Matanzas  and  Port  au 
Prince,  making  short  stays  in  each  place  without 
much  of  incident  occurring  to  enliven  the  cruise, 
except  the  visit  the  military  commandant  of  the  last 
named  port  made  to  the  ship  on  the  6th  of  March. 
The  next  morning  I  was  invited  to  be  one  of  the 
suite  of  officers  to  accompany  Captain  Newton  in 
his  visit  to  the  town  to  call  upon  President  Boyer, 
who  had  arrived  en  route  for  a  tour  around  his 
Island,  and  who  had  signified  through  an  aide  that 
he  would  be  pleased  to  receive  us. 

We  were  conducted  to  one  of  the  public  halls, 
when  we  found  him  surrounded  by  his  staff,  all  in 
full  uniform,  awaiting  us.  He  was  rather  small  in 
stature,  medium-sized  in  person,  of  light-brown  com- 
plexion and  very  neatly  dressed  in  a  uniform  of 
which  he  seemed  to  be  quite  proud,  as  it  far  outshone 
ours,  which  were  in  simplicity  more  becoming  officers 
of  a  republican  government.  It  was  amusing  to 
watch  his  frequent  adjustment  of  his  epaulettes 
whilst  he  was  conversing. 

He  made  many  inquiries  in  regard  to  the  United 
States,  appearing  eager  for  information  as  to  our 


FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          65 

government.  He  got  hold  of  the  commission  and 
the  diploma  of  our  surgeon,  Dr.  Adee,  which  in- 
terested him  very  much,  and  he  was  puzzled  to  un- 
derstand why  the  doctor  had  both,  when  we  had  to 
explain  to  him  that  the  doctor  could  not  have  re- 
ceived his  commission  as  surgeon  in  the  navy  un- 
less he  had  presented  his  diploma  from  a  medical 
college,  evidencing  his  qualifications.  This  he 
thought  an  admirable  requirement,  and  he  made  a 
note  of  it. 

Wherever  we  stopped  amongst  the  islands  as  our 
cruise  continued,  Dr.  Adee,  in  pursuing  his  concho- 
logical  researches  along  the  shores  and  amongst  the 
reefs  would  ask  me  to  accompany  him,  he  going  as  a 
scientist,  whilst  I  had  eyes  only  for  the  shells  that 
were  most  lovely  in  shape  and  color.  He  would 
preserve  his  collections  in  their  rough  coats  as  fine 
specimens,  and  rare  in  their  peculiar  qualities  and 
classes  ;  whilst  I  would,  by  the  use  of  acids,  bring  out 
all  the  loveliness  of  the  shell,  removing  the  dull, 
rough  coatings. 

I  shall  never  forget  his  kindness  and  the  interest 
he  manifested  in  my  welfare.  One  piece  of  good 
advice  he  gave  I  followed  throughout  my  career. 
Whilst  in  the  West  Indies  we  naturally  laid  in  an 
abundant  supply  of  tobacco,  and,  not  able  to  resist 
the  temptation,  I  was  soon  smoking  to  excess,  when 
the  good  doctor  took  me  aside  and  explained  to  me 
that  my  temperament  was  such  as  forbade  the  too 
free  indulgence  in  the  use  of  that  weed,  warning  me 
that  it  would  undermine  my  constitution  before  I 
5 


66          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

was  aware  of  it,  and  urging  me  to  abandon  it.  Hav- 
ing learned  to  respect  his  opinions,  and  appreciating 
the  sincerity  of  his  counsel  I,  young  as  I  was,  re- 
solved to  follow  it,  and  from  that  day  have  never 
used  tobacco  at  all. 

On  the  2Oth  of  March  we  made  the  Morro  de  San- 
tiago de  Cuba,and  passed  through  the  narrow  entrance 
between  the  Morro  and  the  fort  opposite  to  it  in  deep 
water,  so  close  to  the  shore  as  nearly  to  brush  it 
with  our  hull.  Our  square-yards  would  brush  the 
limbs  of  the  trees  growing  upon  the  precipitous  sides 
of  the  harbor  entrance,  which  was  but  along  estuary 
the  whole  way  up  to  the  city,  where  we  anchored  in 
a  most  beautiful,  snug,  land-locked  harbor. 

After  a  three  days'  stay  there,  seeing  what  we 
could  of  the  place,  the  ship  was  got  under  way,  and 
our  cruise  continued  along  the  south  coast  of  Cuba, 
to  the  southward  of  the  Caymans,  where  we  hove  to, 
and  the  boats  were  sent  out  for  turtle,  fresh  pro- 
visions>  and  sand  for  holystoning  the  decks.  Thence 
after  a  peep  into  the  Isle  of  Finos,  to  show  our  flag 
en  passant,  we  headed  north,  after  rounding  the 
west  end  of  Cuba,  for  the  harbor  of  Pensacola. 

April  and  May  were  spent  in  cruising  from  Pen- 
sacola to  St.  Thomas,  where  we  arrived  on  the  8th 
of  June.  A  few  days'  after  our  arrival  in  port  our 
captain  and  a  number  of  his  officers  were  invited  to 
dine  with  the  military  governor  of  St.  Thomas.  I 
was  so  fortunate  as  to  be  included  amongst  those 
asked,  and  I  found  myself  enjoying  the  entertainment 
as  though  I  were  a  veteran  bon-vivant,  and  acting 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          67 

up  to  the  golden  rule,  which  prescribes  that  "  When 
in  Rome,  one  must  do  as  Rome  does."  I  was  for 
the  first  time  emptying  my  glass  of  "  schnapps," 
veritable  clear  Danish  schnapps  !  At  the  end  of  the 
repast,  and  before  leaving  the  dining-room,  the  host, 
followed  by  each  guest,  passed  around  the  table, 
grasping  each  other's  hands,  saying  "wel  becomin." 
It  was,  we  were  told,  an  old  Danish  custom,  origin- 
ating in  a  desire  to  demonstrate  that  all  who  had  par- 
ticipated in  the  banquet  were  parting  as  friends,  and 
to  remind  all  that  any  hot  words  spoken  over  their 
cups  must  be  forgotten,  for  after  handshakings  all 
prior  ill-feelings  should  be  banished.  After  the  din- 
ner came  cards,  but,  as  we  were  unaccustomed  to 
play  for  money  on  such  occasions,  none  of  us  had 
come  provided,  and  consequently  that  portion  of 
the  programme  was  a  failure.  Le  jeu  ne  valait  pas 
la  chandelle  !  and  so  we  separated  earlier  than  had 
been  expected,  and  on  the  morning  following  we 
sailed,  to  continue  our  cruise. 

On  the  1 5th  of  June  we  anchored  off  Ponce,  on  the 
south  side  of  Porto  Rico.  Whilst  here  our  consul 
was  very  attentive  to  our  officers,  and  to  those  of  the 
"  Grampus,"  inviting  us  to  visit  his  estancia,  some  six 
miles  in  the  interior,  and  accessible  on  horseback. 

As  we  were  expected  to  make  a  day  of  it,  we  were 
requested  to  bring  out  our  "  five-bottle  "  men.  Our 
vessel  was  but  poorly  off  in  that  qualification,  but 
the  "  Grampus "  had  a  schooner's  share  of  such 
heroes,  one  of  whom,  to  fortify  himself  for  the  con- 
test, had  primed  up  too  often,  so  that  it  became  nee- 


68          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

essary  to  provide  a  donkey  for  his  especial  use,  that 
he  might  be  brought  out  to  see,  if  not  to  engage  in, 
the  festivities. 

We  formed  quite  an  imposing  cavalcade,  and  after 
considerable  parade  and  occasional  racing  en  route, 
we  arrived  at  the  country-seat  of  our  host,  and  were 
cordially  received  by  him  and  his  household,  con- 
sisting of  his  housekeeper  or  "  brevet-wife,"  a  pretty 
quadroon  and  her  mother  (to  chaperone,  I  suppose), 
but  I  observed  that  we  were  not  formally  introduced, 
"  custumbre  del  pais"  but  soon  became  sociable,  and, 
furnished  with  white  linen  jackets  by  the  host,  we 
soon  felt  perfectly  at  home,  and  some  of  us  wandered 
about  the  plantation  among  the  cocoanut  trees, 
drinking  the  delicious  milk  of  the  nut  just  plucked 
from  the  tree,  and  very  cool  and  refreshing  in  this 
warm  climate. 

At  dinner  we  had  nothing  of  the  drinking-bout  that 
had  been  expected  from  the  bantering  of  our  host, 
and  as  one  of  the  great  guns  from  the  "Grampus"  was 
hors  de  combat,  as  I  have  mentioned,  we  were  very 
well  pleased  that  there  was  no  such  trial  and  test 
of  capacity.  We  had  a  most  charming  visit,  and  in 
the  cool  of  the  evening  rode  quietly  back  to  town  and 
were  soon  on  board  ship. 

After  receiving  a  visit  from  the  commandant  of 
the  port,  and  saluting  him  according  to  his  rank,  we 
sailed  again,  and  on  the  28th  came  to  off  Port  Royal, 
Jamaica.  Our  anchorage  was  immediately  over  the 
old  town  of  Port  Royal,  which  had  been  destroyed 
in  the  great  earthquake. 


FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.          69 

It  is  a  story  often  told  that  anchors  are  sometimes 
lost  from  being  hooked  in  the  open  doors  and  win- 
dows of  the  submerged  houses.  We  could  not  tes- 
tify to  this  ourselves  as  our  anchor  came  readily  up 
when,  after  a  three  da)^'  stay  in  port,  we  weighed 
and  stood  out  to  sea — our  short  stay  preventing  a 
visit  to  Kingston  at  the  head  of  the  harbor. 

On  the  1 2th  of  July  we  made  the  Highlands  of 
Navesink,  and  were  soon  at  anchor  off  the  Battery. 

Cotton  and  I  were  given  duty  as  watch  officers,  as 
several  of  the  wardroom  officers  were  given  leave. 

On  August  ist  thirteen  minute-guns  were  fired 
to  the  memory  of  the  late  Commodore  Wm. 
Bainbridge.  On  the  gth  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
accompanied  by  the  Navy  Commissioners,  visited  the 
ship,  and  on  their  arrival  and  departure  the  yards 
were  manned  and  salutes  fired — and  soon  afterwards 
I  was  detached  with  three  months'  leave. 

When  we  reached  port  this  time  I  found  that  my 
sister  and  her  husband  were  in  New  York,  with  two 
of  my  brothers  and  several  friends  from  Louisville 
for  a  summer's  trip  ;  so  I  had  the  opportunity  of 
showing  to  my  western  friends  a  real  man-of-war, 
spending  all  of  the  time  that  could  be  spared  from 
my  duties  in  their  company. 

Captain  Newton  was  very  polite  to  the  party, 
which  particularly  gratified  me ;  but  when  they 
left  to  continue  their  eastern  trip  and  I  was  start- 
ing for  Washington,  the  complimentary  letter  he 
gave  me  was  more  than  gratifying,  as  I  had  remem- 
bered a  number  of  little  tiffs  in  the  course  of  the 


70          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

cruise  making  me  think  I  was  not  well  treated  still 
the  merry  twinkle  in  his  eyes  often  told  me  that 
there  was  no  angry  feeling  mixed  up  with  his  man- 
ner of  discharging  his  official  duties,  although  I  was 
rather  a  noisy  midshipman,  and  must  havetannoyed 
him  often. 

Once  he  was  compelled  to  suspend  me  from  duty 
to  preserve  a  proper  discipline  and  to  furnish  an 
example  to  other  midshipmen  (  as  the  French  say, 
"pourencouragerles  autres  "—the  reason  they  assigned 
for  the  shooting  of  poor  old  Admiral  Byng  by  the 
English  for  his  failure  at  Port  Mahone  !) ;  but  I  was 
soon  restored  to  duty,  and  I  could  at  the  end  of  the 
cruise  see  that,  whilst  strictly  disciplining  me  when- 
ever my  shortcomings  were  noticed,  he  was  a  good 
friend  to  me. 

I  did  not  visit  the  West  this  time,  but,  after  a  short 
stay  in  Washington,  I  applied  for  permission  to  at- 
tend one  of  the  naval  schools  ( there  were  two  then, 
one  at  the  Navy  Yard,  New  York,  the  other  at  the 
Navy  Yard,  Norfolk)  to  prepare  myself  in  the  ma- 
thematical course,  navigation  and  nautical  astron- 
omy, for  my  coming  examination.  I  had  received  an 
invitation  from  a  friend,  Midshipman  Thornton  A. 
Jenkins,  to  room  with  him  on  board  the  frigate 
"  Java"  at  the  Norfolk  Navy  Yard  ;  and,  when  the 
the  permission  was  obtained,  I  reported  as  soon  as 
possible,  to  Commodore  Warrington,  commandant 
of  the  Navy  Yard,  and  got  my  orders  to  the  "  Java," 
where  the  school  was  held,  and  on  board  of  which  all 
of  the  midshipmen  were  domiciled  to  the  number  of 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          Jl 

some  fifty.  All  the  wardroom  staterooms  were  filled, 
two  in  a  room,  the  surplus  stowed  in  the  steerage, 
and  Jenkins  being  fortunately  in  a  stateroom  I  joined 
him, and  so  was  much  more  comfortable  than  I  should 
otherwise  have  been. 

A  lieutenant  was  in  command,  at  first  Farragut, 
and  afterwards  A.  G.  Slaughter,  with  an  old-time 
sailing-master  to  assist  in  keeping  order  amongst 
the  midshipmen.  There  were  a  few  oldsters  in  the 
mess,  and  we  had  as  our  teacher,  Professor  Rod- 
riguez, a  fine  mathematician,  who  was  expected 
to  prepare  us  for  our  final  examination,  to  which  we 
looked  forward  as  to  a  most  trying  ordeal. 

Although  we  were  a  rollicking  set  of  "  reefers,"  we 
all  understood  that  upon  our  close  application  to 
study  depended  our  success  in  our  career,  and  I 
must  say  that,  with  all  of  our  fun  and  mischief,  which 
we  carried  on  at  proper  hours,  we  were  reasonably 
assiduous  and  did  well  for  youngsters  who  had  only 
their  own  sense  of  propriety  to  spur  them  on  in 
their  studies. 

Of  course  during  the  term  so  spent  in  increasing 
our  knowledge  there  were  many  hours  that  would 
have  hung  heavily  upon  us,  had  we  not  made  the 
acquaintance  of  the  young  ladies  in  Norfolk  in 
whose  delightful  society  we  were  wont  to  while  away 
our  evenings,  and  at  balls  and  other  entertainments 
amongst  the  young  people  we  were  always  in  de- 
mand. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  a  change  was  made 
in  our  uniform,  designed,  it  was  said,  to  bring  it  as 


72          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

near  that  of  Revolutionary  times  as  modern  fashions 
would  permit,  and  the  broad-flap  double-breasted 
coat  and  white  knee-breeches  were  introduced. 

This  latter  change  in  the  regulation,  with  knee- 
tights,  silk  stockings  and  buckled  shoes,  was  rather 
trying  to  those  whose  profession,  confining  them  to 
shipboard  without  opportunity  for  vigorous  exer- 
cise in  walking  further  than  was  afforded  by  the 
quarter-deck  and  forecastle,  was  anything  but  con- 
ducive to  the  muscular  development  of  the  lower 
limbs  and  the  calves  of  the  leg,  and  generally  they 
were  a  bad  fit  for  silk  stockings. 

At  one  of  the  balls  one  of  our  number,  a  finely- 
formed  and  handsome  midshipman,  had  the  temerity 
or  vanity  to  venture  an  appearance  in  "  full  tog." 
A  young  lady  next  to  Jiitn  in  one  of  the  dances — a 
belle,  and  so  correspondingly  privileged — doubted 
the  genuineness  of  the  outfit  and  suspected  cotton 
in  the  shape  of  padding.  'Twas  such  a  doubt  as 
to  a  woman's  mind  called  for  a  solution,  and  she, 
bent  thereon,  took  an  early  opportunity  to  thrust  a 
shawl-pin  into  the  suspected  calf,  which  act,  to  her 
surprise,  was  followed  by  so  sudden  a  yell  of  pain 
as  to  carry  conviction  to  the  lookers-on  and  made 
the  young  man  the  hero  of  the  evening. 

That  uniform  regulation  did  not  last  long,  because 
of  its  universal  unpopularity,  and  it  was  supplanted 
by  the  more  seemly  white  cassimere  pantaloons 
which  deprived  our  handsome  fellows  of  such  ad- 
vantage as  well-developed  calves  might  have  given 
them. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          73 

That  midshipman  was  a  fellow-townsman  of  mine 
in  Louisville,  and  I  was  his  pall-bearer  when  he  died, 
a  lieutenant,  in  Philadelphia.  The  lady  whose 
shawl-pin  solved  the  mystery  of  the  silk  stocking 
afterward  married  a  captain  in  the  navy,  who,  being 
a  Virginian,  felt  himself  impelled  to  follow  the 
fortunes  of  his  state  in  the  war  of  the  rebellion,  and 
so  the  navy  lost  him. 

Although  our  assignment  to  duty  was  for  a  term 
of  study,  and  our  friends  naturally  expected  that 
we  would  make  the  most  of  our  time  ;  yet  "  all 
work  and  no  play  makes  Jack  a  dull  boy,"  and  that 
was  our  excuse  to  our  consciences  when  we  would 
turn  to  the  society  of  the  fair  ladies  of  Norfolk, 
which  we  did  as  often  as  possible,  and  felt  it  rather 
to  be  an  incentive  to  study  than  a  drawback. 

Society  there  was  more  distinctively  naval  than 
that  of  any  other  city  I  know  of — every  one  of  those 
we  met  seeming  in  some  way  connected  with  the 
navy.  Those  not  daughters  or  sisters  of  naval 
officers  were  in  someway  related — and  all,  old  and 
young,  were  interested  in  our  success,  and  often  our 
conversation  with  our  friends  was  upon  professional 
topics. 

The  young  ladies  were  conversant  with  all  that  we 
would  be  examined  upon,  some  even  had  copies  of 
drill  questions  with  which  to  puzzle  the  new-comers, 
and  all  had  Navy  Registers  by  which  they  could 
keep  informed  as  to  the  standing  of  their  friends 
or  brothers  who  had  taken  to  the  water. 

They  were  certainly  a  very  attractive  set'  of  girls, 


74          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

possessing  all  that  grace  and  ease  of  manner  of 
which  we  see  so  much  in  southern  ladies;  and  the 
climate  gave  them  a  softness  of  voice  that  made 
their  conversation  almost  musical,  and  most  agree- 
able to  listen  to. 

If  we  were  not  all  swamped  in  love  it  was  only 
due  to  the  fact  of  pre-occupation  or  stronger  ties  of 
pre-engagement.  Yet  I  doubt  not  many  were  cap- 
tured by  those  beauties,  before  the  term  of  our 
study  was  over,  and  what  was  a  poor,  weak  mortal 
of  a  susceptible  reefer  to  do  when  surrounded  by 
charms  that  would  enthrall  an  anchorite  ?  It  was 
charming  to  be  anchored  in  their  midst,  and  we 
would  fain  moor  ship  at  once.  But  these  charmers 
did  their  best  to  excite  professional  emulation  in 
their  admirers,  and  I  remarked  that  the  more  pro- 
ficient were  the  greater  favorites  with  them.  Their 
surroundings  and  their  relations  made  it  most 
natural  that  they  should  look  for  excellence  in  their 
especial  friends. 

The  paterfamilias  had  his  weather-eye  opened 
by  experience,  also,  and  it  was  not  easy  for  a  reefer 
to  capture  a  prize.  I  recall  one  instance  in  which  an 
old  officer  was  approached  by  a  brave  and  confident 
midshipman,  who  requested  the  paternal  consent  to 
his  union  with  the  daughter.  The  old  gentleman  was 
a  little  inquisitive  as  to  the  means  of  support  possessed 
by  a  young  gentleman  on  whose  appointment  the 
ink  was  scarcely  dry.  He  asked,  "  How  can  you 
both  live  on  nineteen  dollars  per  month  and  one 
ration  per  day  ?  "  (which  was  the  midshipman's  pay 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.  75 

in  those  days).  To  which  came  the  ready  response 
of  the  cheeky  youngster,  that  "  the  house  was  large, 
and  they  would  be  content  to  take  a  room  up 
stairs  !  "  But  it  did  not  satisfy  the  wise  old  head, 
and  the  middy  had  to  stand  aside  for  a  while. 

In  the  November  of  that  year,  1833,  a  real  "  in- 
cident "  occurred.  At  about  2  a.  m.  one  night  we 
were  all  roused  from  our  comfortable  beds  by  the 
loud  and  earnest  call  of  the  old  quarter-master  on 
watch,  "  Hurry  on  deck,  young  gentlemen  !  the 
stars  are  all  falling  from  aloft,  and  there  will  not  be 
one  left  for  you  to  shoot !  "  We  did  hurry  at  such 
an  announcement,  and  sure  enough  the  heavens 
were  ablaze  with  what  appeared  to  be  falling  stars  ; 
some  with  long  bright  streams  following  their  down- 
ward path  in  their  rapidly-descending  course,  others 
quietly  and,  with  seeming  reluctance,  losing  their 
hold  in  the  heavens  and  approaching  mother-earth. 

It  was  a  most  sublime  spectacle  !  The  air  was  filled 
with  heavenly  fireworks,  far  surpassing  any  display 
that  could  be  attempted  by  earthly  pyrotechny. 

This  was  the  "  meteoric  shower  "  which  has  for  its 
period  a  term  of  thirty-three  or  thirty-four  years,  but 
was  not  at  that  time  of  such  great  interest  to  astrono- 
mers as  it  subsequently  became  during  the  time  I  was 
the  superintendent  of  the  Naval  Observatory  in 
1867 — just  thirty-four  years  afterwards,  when  the 
astronomers  in  all  parts  of  the  world  engaged  in  the 
observation  and  discussion  of  the  subject,  seeking 
to  adduce  a  theory  for  its  cause  and  recurrence. 

But  this  is  not  a  place  for  a  dissertation  on  astron* 


76         FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

omy  or  the  causes  for  such  an  atmospheric  display 
which  were  accepted  so  many  years  afterwards. 

To  pass  a  respectable  examination  in  nautical 
astronomy  was  satisfaction  enough  for  any  reason- 
able reefer  whose  fate  was  depending  upon  the 
issue  of  that  examination  which  was  to  come  in 
June  of  the  following  year  before  the  board  of 
gray  heads. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

STAND   EXAMINATION    FOR   PROMOTION  IN    BALTI- 
MORE, AT  BARNUM'S  HOTEL — PASS  NO.  12  ON  LIST 

OF   '67   WHO   GOT   THROUGH  SATISFACTORILY. 

OUR  pastimes  during  the  hours  when  we  were 
freed  from  study  and  drill  were  foot-racing  on  shore 
in  the  woods  abreast  the  ship  or  skylarking  on 
board,  and  in  this  last  recreation  we  were  a  particu- 
larly noisy  set.  The  officers  in  the  cabin  always 
preferred  that  we  should  take  to  the  shore  for  our 
exercise,  that  the  ship  and  those  who  dwelt  there- 
on might  have  more  hours  of  peace  and  quiet. 

The  good  old  sailing-master  always  felt  more  safe 
when  we  were  away,  giving  him  time  to  "  freshen 
the  ship,"  for  when  near-by  we  never  failed  to  run 
some  rig  upon  him  whenever,  without  identification, 
any  of  us  could  play  it  successfully. 

At  last  the  June  of  1834  rolled  around  and  we 
were  ordered  to  appear  before  a  Board  composed  of 
Commodore  Jacob  Jones,  presiding,  and  captains 
Bolton  and  Nicholson,  with  Mr.  Rodriguez  as  the 
mathematical  examiner. 

Now  began  the  most  serious  time, — no  running 
rig,  no  frolicking,  but  with  heads  bent  to  our  tasks 

77 


78          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

and  calculating  our  chances  of  success,  we  were  en- 
gaged "  overhauling  "  and  "  underrunning  "  what 
we  were  supposed  to  have  learned  in  our  six  years 
of  naval  experience. 

It  was  a  trying  ordeal  to  most  of  us  who  had 
endeavored  to  make  good  use  of  our  time,  and  who 
were  devoted  to  the  Navy  as  a  profession. 

There  were  some  who  were  indifferent  and  did  not 
worry  themselves  as  to  the  issue;  but  I  for  one,  had 
identified  myself  with  this  fascinating  service  and 
was  accordingly  anxious  regarding  the  result  of  the 
examination  Avhich  was  to  make  or  mar  my  future. 

It  was  worse  than  going  into  battle,  where  some 
excitement  would  have  been  found  ;  for  this  exam- 
ination which  was  to  decide  our  fate  in  the  service 
seemed  too  cold-blooded  fora  nervous  temperament. 

The  New  York  and  Norfolk  schools  reported  for 
examination  on  the  day  named  in  the  order,  being 
in  number  some  seventy-eight,  exclusive  of  the 
"bolters"  who  could  not  stand  the  fire.  Sixty- 
seven  passed  ;  although  twelve  of  these  were  held  in 
abeyance  for  a  while  as  doubtful ;  but,  as  some  of 
those  at  the  tail-end  of  the  twelve  had  something  to 
recommend  them  to  favor,  the  whole  twelve  were 
finally  passed,  making  the  total  of  sixty-seveji  who 
obtained  their  certificates  of  proficiency. 

The  Board  convened  in  a  parlor  of  Barnum's 
Hotel  in  Baltimore,  and  one  at  a  time  was  called  for 
from  the  ante-room,  which  always  had  some  dozen  or 
so  tc  expectants  "  in  waiting,  the  names  of  those  who 
were  likely  to  be  called  being  ascertained  the  evening 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          79 

before.  Other  stragglers  assembled  around  the 
barroom  below,  awaiting  to  congratulate  the  success- 
ful or  to  condole  with  the  unfortunate  through  the 
medium  of  a  mint-julep  treat  by  those  who  joined 
smilingly  as  they  came  from  the  tribunal.  I  re- 
member that  when  I  came  out  from  the  Board-room 
my  clothes  were  damp  with  perspiration,  such 
was  the  degree  of  excitement  through  which  I  had 
gone.  It  was  near  the  hour  of  dining  when  my  ex- 
amination in  seamanship  was  concluded,  and  it  was 
suggested  by  one  member  of  the  Board  that  they 
adjourn ;  but  I  implored  them  not  to  do  so.  I 
saw  that  I  had  been  successful  in  seamanship  and 
this  inspired  me  with  confidence  in  my  ability  to  go 
safely  through  my  mathematical  "  quiz,"  and  not 
desiring  to  make  "  two  bites  of  a  cherry"  I  ap- 
pealed to  Mr.  Rodriguez  to  say  if  he  could  not 
soon  finish  his  part.  The  Board  smilingly  consented, 
and  I  was  gratified  at  receiving  my  certificate  before 
their  soup  grew  cold. 

With  a  long-drawn  sigh  of  relief  and  rejoicing  at 
my  success,  I  joined  my  comrades  in  the  barroom 
below,  and  mint-juleps  for  the  party  made  my  friends 
as  "  smiling  "  as  I  was  myself. 

Having  passed  No.  12  on  the  list  of  sixty-seven 
who  got  through,  I  was  well  pleased  with  my  posi- 
tion. 

Being  taken  ill  at  the  residence  of  an  uncle  I  did 
not  return  to  my  ship  or  to  Washington,  but  awaited 
the  arrival  of  my  brother,  who  was  about  going 
west,  and  I  accompanied  him  to  Louisville,  to  stay 


80    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

awhile  with  my  parents.  I  always  enjoyed  my 
visits  to  that  city,  and  now,  returning  after  a  success- 
ful examination  and  a  step  higher  on  the  ladder  of 
promotion  as  a  passed-midshipman,  I  was  made  more 
of  than  before  ;  and,  sailors  being  scarce  in  the  West, 
I  enjoyed  a  kind  of  monopoly  of  the  attention  that 
sailors  always  received  when  on  shore. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

ENJOY  KENTUCKY  HOSPITALITY  AGAIN — JOIN  THE 
U.  S.  COAST  SURVEY  IN  MAY,  1835 — THE  GREAT 
BASE  LINE  ON  FIRE  ISLAND — CAMP  OUT — CLOSE 
AND  CROWDED  QUARTERS — SPOONING — GEDNEY 
CHANNEL  DISCOVERED  BY  OUR  PARTY — ENGAGED 
TO  BE  MARRIED— OFFICE-WORK. 

THAT  summer  and  the  following  winter  were 
fraught  with  enjoyment  for  me.  Delightful  to  a 
promoted  midshipman  were  the  summer  evening  so- 
ciables and  the  winter  moonlight  sleigh-rides  out  into 
the  country — the  cold  rides  ending  always  under 
comfortable  shelter  with  large  wood-fires,  refresh- 
ments and  a  "  fiddler  "  to  greet  us  and  ready  to  start 
the  dancing  and  to  keep  it  up  until  we  were  started 
on  our  return  home  with  the  girls  in  the  morning! 
All  these  tokens  of  good  old  Kentucky  hospitality 
would  naturally  prove  a  fruitful  source  of  gratifica- 
tion !  So  the  days  and  weeks  and  months  slipped 
rapidly  by,  and  my  leave  was  out  and  its  renewal 
for  three  months  had  expired  before  the  thoughts 
of  another  cruise  were  obtruding  themselves  upon 
my  pleasure. 

I  was  beginning  then  to  look  about  and  inquir- 
ing for  duty  that  would  be  gratifying  when  a  letter 
6  Sr 


82          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

from  my  friend  and  room-mate  of  the  "  Java," 
Jenkins,  informed  me  that  Professor  Hassler,  the 
Superintendent  of  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey  was  anx- 
ious to  obtain  young  officers,  who  had  passed  well 
in  their  studies,  for  hydrographic  work  on  our 
coast. 

He  had  already  been  detailed  and  advised  me  to 
apply,  which  I  did,  and  in  May,  1835,  I  was  assigned 
to  duty  on  board  of  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey  schooner 
"  Jersey,"  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant-com- 
manding Thomas  R.  Gedney,  then  at  the  New  York 
yard,  fitting  out. 

Griffiths,1  T.  J.  Page,2  J.  T.  McLaughlin,3  Thorn- 
ton A.  Jenkins,4  B.  F.  Sands,5  Wm.  H.  Ball,6 
William  Chandler,7  D.  D.  Porter,8  Holcomb  John 
Rodgers,9  Richard  W.  Meade,10  and  Wyche  n  were 
our  officers  at  different  parts  of  the  season. 

Our  field-work  was  near  the  great  base  line  on 
Fire  Island,  south  side  of  Long  Island,  New  York, 
we  being  occupied  in  the  hydrography  of  the  little 
bay  and  off  Fire  Island  Inlet. 

Our  life  on  this  duty  had  in  it  a  good  deal  of  what 
is  called  "  roughing  it."  Six  of  us  were  assigned  to 
the  triangulation  points  along  the  shore,  and  we 
were  obliged  to  camp  out,  and  for  our  accommoda- 

I  Died,  Lieutenant.  2  Seceded.    Commanded  "  Stonewall." 
3  Died,  Lieutenant.  4  Rear-Admiral. 

6  Rear-Admiral.  6  Dismissed,  Commander. 

7  Died,  Lieutenant.  8  The  Admiral  of  the  Navy. 
9  Died,  Rear- Admiral.  10  Died,  Captain. 

II  Suicide,  Lieutenant. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          83 

tion  one  tent  was  provided,  and  a  smaller  one  for 
our  steward  and  the  cooking-stove. 

Our  beds,  or  rather  I  should  say  our  bed,  was 
made  of  straw,  spread  from  one  side  of  the  tent  to 
the  other  and  covered  over  with  a  tarpaulin  to  pro- 
tect us  from  the  dampness  of  the  sand  beneath,  and 
thereon  we,  all  six  of  us,  had  to  turn  in  "all  stand- 
ing," i.  e.,  with  our  clothes  on,  "  spoon  fashion,"  with 
overcoats  doing  duty  as  extra  blankets  whenever 
the  weather  became  cool  enough  to  require  us  to  put 
them  on. 

Our  tent  was  full  with  our  own  party,  yet  on  one' 
occasion  Lieutenant  George  Blake,  who  had  been 
designated  to  command  another  party,  was  added 
to  ours  temporarily  that  he  might  be  indoctrinated 
into  the  methods  of  doing  our  work,  and  this  rather 
crowded  us,  and  the  "  spoon-fashion  "  was  a  literal 
necessity  when  stowing  ourselves  for  the  night. 

It  was  still  a  novelty,  and  we  all  entered  heartily 
into  the  fun  of  it,  the  situation  enabling  the  younger 
members  of  the  party  to  disregard  now  and  then 
the  question  of  rank  in  the  liberties  we  would  take 
with  the  "  Lieutenant." 

I  was  directed  to  stow  next  to  him,  and  as  it  was 
impossible,  without  great  discomfort,  for  a  single 
individual  to  reverse  his  position,  a  spirit  of  fairness 
led  us  to  adopt  a  rule  that  all  should  turn  over  at 
the  same  time,  and  my  duty,  as  the  youngest  of  the 
party  and  the  readiest  for  fun,  was  to  give  the  word 
"  spoon,"  when  any  got  tired  of  their  position,  and 
then  we  could  all  turn  promptly  and  together. 


84          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

This  was  done  once  or  tAvice  in  the  earlier  part 
of  the  first  night  for  practice,  and  to  try  the  humor 
of  the  grave  and  reverend  signor,  the  Lieutenant  ; 
but  he  took  it  all  in  good  part,  seemingly  enjoying 
the  lark,  so  we  did  not  annoy  him  much,  but  slept 
soundly  and  tightly  packed  together. 

Whilst  thus  encamped,  roast  mussels  were  our 
luxury  ;  but  when  anchored  in  the  bay  we  reveled  in 
Bluepoint  oysters,  so  celebrated  for  their  delicate 
flavor.  Our  steward  was  John  Brown,  of  the  Worm- 
ley  family  of  Washington,  and  he  was  a  good  cook, 
and  cared  well  for  our  prandial  exercise,  and  we 
were  happy. 

Before  the  season  was  over  we  shifted  our  anchor- 
age to  the  Sandy  Hook  entrance  to  New  York  bay 
and  harbor,  and  then  commenced  the  survey  of  the 
bar  which  led  to  the  discovery  of  the  noted  "  Gedney 
channel "  (which  received  its  name  from  that  of  our 
commanding  officer).  This  channel  carried  two  feet 
more  water  over  the  bar  than  was  known  before  to 
be  possible,  and  at  once  this  established  the  useful- 
ness of  the  coast  survey  among  the  mariners,  and 
especially  with  the  merchants  of  New  York.  The 
cry  had  always  been  "  cui  bono  !  "  when  an  appro- 
priation was  asked  for  in  Congress,  and  now  we 
could  point  to  valuable  results  for  an  answer. 

The  winter  of  1835  was  passed  in  office-work  in 
Washington,  where  fair  copies  of  the  summer's  work 
were  made  and  preparation  for  the  next  summer's 
work  was  begun. 

This  duty  was  very  pleasant  for  us  all,  and  espe- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          85 

daily  so  to  me,  who  had  a  home  in  that  city,  ena- 
bling me  to  turn  my  attention  to  something  else 
besides  hydrography :  and,  making  good  use  of  my 
time,  it  resulted  in  an  engagement  to  be  married  to 
the  young  lady  whom  I  first  met  upon  my  arrival  as 
a  youngster  from  the  west,  the  "  tie  nuptial,"  to  be 
made  upon  the  graduation  of  her  brother  at  West 
Point,  some  three  years  afterwards. 

Upon  this  I  might  discourse  at  some  length,  but 
there  are  inward  feelings  and  thoughts  we  would 
fain  keep  within  our  own  hearts,  as  being  too  sacred 
even  to  go  into  the  body  of  a  private  journal. 

However,  events  showed  that  we  did  not  care  to 
wait  the  expiration  of  the  long  period  first  agreed 
upon.  That  was  fixed  as  a  mere  compliment  to 
the  brother,  who  was  my  friend,  and  I  had  in  my 
own  heart  encouraged  a  quiet  hope  that  I  might  be 
able  to  shorten  up  the  term  of  the  engagement. 

Although  I  was  not  much  of  a  draughtsman  (we 
were  all  new  to  the  work,  as  the  whole  manner  of 
it  was  new  to  this  country),  still  being  quite 
handy  with  the  pen,  I  was  directed  to  take  the  work 
of  putting  our  work  in  ink — and  I  improved  consid- 
erably as  the  labor  progressed.  There  was  work 
enough  putting  the  field  work  on  the  fair  copy,  and 
in  the  reduction  of  soundings  and  plotting  the  an- 
gles, and  in  preparing  the  charts  for  the  next  sum- 
mer's work  which  we  would  enter  upon  with  greater 
experience. 

This  office  work  was  not  fertile  in  incidents  for  a 
journal,  and  consequently  the  chapters  of  this  por- 


86          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

tion  of  my  "  half-a-century  "  jottings  will  be  short  in 
comparison  with  those  which  tell  of  my  sea-life,  my 
cruises  generally  furnishing  items  which  made  the 
noting  of  them  interesting  to  those  we  left  at 
home. 


CHAPTER   X. 

VISIT  THE  PRESIDENT  WITH  SUPERINTENDENT 
HASSLER — OUR  CHIEF'S  QUAINT  FIELD-CARRIAGE 
—RECOLLECTIONS  AND  ANECDOTES  OF  HASSLER 
— HIS  RAGE  AT  THE  COMMITTEE  OF  CONGRESS 
— A  SHIPWRECK  OFF  SANDY  HOOK — MY  MAR- 
RIAGE, NOVEMBER  I5TH,  1836. 

IN  May,  1836,  we  were  detached  from  the  office- 
work  under  orders  to  resume  our  active  work  in 
the  field.  Before  leaving  Washington,  however,  our 
venerable  superintendent,  in  his  quaint  old  carriage, 
called  at  the  White  House  in  company  with  his  as- 
sistants, on  an  official  visit,  to  report  to  the  President 
our  progress,  and  to  show  the  results  of  his  work 
during  the  previous  season. 

The  discovery  of  the  new  channel,  with  its  in- 
creased depth  of  water,  into  New  York  Harbor,  was 
of  itself  a  result  of  great  importance  to  the  commer- 
cial community  of  that  city,  second  only  to  the  more 
scientific  success  attending  the  measurement  of  the 
base  line  at  Fire  Island,  along  the  eastern  part  of 
Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  the  longest  base  line  ever  run 
in  the  history  of  geodetic  surveys. 

We  of  the  hydrographic  party  had  to  show  off 


88          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

our  charts  at  this  special  meeting,  and  the  President, 
Andrew  Jackson,  expressed  himself  much  pleased, 
to  Mr.  Hassler's  great  gratification. 

That  curious  old  carriage  of  Mr.  Hassler  was  a 
vehicle  which  the  old  gentleman  designed  because 
of  the  injury  done  to  his  large  theodolite  in  its  trans- 
portation by  rail  from  point  to  point  in  primary 
triangulation.  The  shaking  of  the  cars,  which  did 
not  run  as  smoothly  as  do  those  in  use  in  these  later 
days,  actually  loosened  the  screws  and  prevented 
further  use  of  the  instrument  until  it  could  be  re- 
adjusted by  the  instrument-maker. 

His  carriage  was  so  constructed  as  to  carry  not 
only  the  theodolite,  but  Mr.  Hassler  and  his  be- 
longings for  the  season,  in  all  his  camping  out  at 
the  different  points  of  triangulation.  The  safe  trans- 
portation of  the  instrument  was  the  chief  thing 
considered  in  its  design  ;  but  the  additional  provi- 
sions for  his  individual  comfort  were  ingenious. 

The  carriage  was  mounted  upon  the  easiest  of 
huge  *  C '  springs,'  with  places  front  and  back  for 
the  cases  holding  the  instrument,  and  was  almost 
square  in  shape,  as  best  for  economy  of  space  in 
stowing.  A  little  spirit-room,  as  it  were,  was  under- 
foot for  his  Swiss  wines,  the  seats  providing  lockers 
for  the  little  baggage  he  carried  and  the  stationery 
and  books  that  always  accompanied  him. 

This  equipage,  drawn  by  four  horses,  with  Mr. 
Hassler  occupying  the  back  seat  in  his  "  company  " 
suit  of  brown,  always  attracted  attention  on  the 
avenue,  and  he  would  frequently,  with  great  unself- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          89 

ishness,  lend  it  to  his  assistants  when  they  had  any 
long  rides  before  them. 

It  certainly  was  a  very  easy-riding  vehicle,  with 
not  much  of  beauty  about  it  to  please  the  eye,  but 
affording  great  comfort  to  those  within  it. 

In  camp,  when  he  was  at  his  stations,  it  took  the 
place  of  a  bedstead,  the  running  gear  being  removed, 
and  the  front  let  down  ;  it  was  also  his  office  in  the 
daytime,  with  everything  he  desired  at  his  hand, 
even  to  the  Swiss  wine,  crackers  and  cheese  for  his 
lunches. 

In  this  turnout  he  would,  at  the  close  of  his  own 
work,  travel  around  and  visit  for  inspection  the 
stations  of  his  assistants  who  were  nearest  to  his  own 
point  of  labor. 

Mr.  Hassler  was  quaint  in  his  manner,  but  greatly 
admired  and  respected  by  his  assistants,  being 
always  genial  and  very  accessible,  except  to  those 
whom  he  suspected  of  being  unfriendly  to  him  ; 
with  such  he  would  give  way  to  displays  of  temper 
that  would  simply  astound  us. 

I  never  saw  him  more  indignant  than  upon  the 
occasion  of  a  visit  from  a  committee  of  Congress, — 
Henry  A.  Wise  and  Caleb  Cushing,  of  the  corporal's 
guard,  as  President  Tyler's  friends  were  then  called, 
— who  called  for  the  purpose  of  inspecting  his  work. 

Mr.  Cushing  had  brought  with  him  an  ordinary 
carpenter's  foot-rule  to  measure  the  copper-plates  for 
engravings  that  had  been  made  in  Europe  as  being 
superior  to  any  manufactured  in  this  country  and 
procured  with  a  view,  also,  of  arousing  a  competition 


90          FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

in  this  country  for  such  plates.  The  old  gentleman 
was  so  indignant  that  he  would  have  kicked  the 
honorable  member  from  the  office  but  for  the  in- 
terposition of  the  assistants  who  got  between  them  ! 
He  was  shocked  at  the  idea  that  anyone  would 
think  of  measuringwith  a  carpenter's  rule  the  work 
which  was  the  result  of  the  highest  scientific  skill. 

He  never  used  glasses  in  reading  or  writing,  having 
his  vest  pockets  filled  with  snuff  to  excite  his  optic 
nerves.  He  would  say  that  this  was  the  only  help 
his  eyes  required. 

He  was  quaint  in  his  language,  particularly  in 
his  English  orthography,  cautioning  his  assistants 
always  to  inquire  closely  into  the  derivation  and  spell- 
ing of  the  names  of  localities  in  our  surveys.  He 
would  never  accept  the  spelling  of  "  Neversink"  one 
of  the  prominent  points  near  Sandy  Hook,  but  in- 
sisted upon  "  Navesink"  as  the  correct  orthography  ; 
and  upon  every  name  put  down  by  us  on  the  charts 
he  would  make  his  comments. 

Often  upon  our  return  to  office-work  in  the  morn- 
ings we  could  "  follow  his  tracks "  by  the  snuff 
scattered  over  the  charts,  which  he  had  been  inspect- 
ing in  our  absence,  leaving,  also,  pencil-notes  and  crit- 
icisms upon  our  lettering,  such  as  "  d d  bad  sign 

painting!"  under  some  fancy  lettering  in  the  titles 
of  out  charts  ;  or  if  the  letters  were  inclined  to  right 
or  left  too  much  for  his  fancy,  he  would  write 
"  Drunken  letters  "  as  expressive  of  his  opinion  of 
our  efforts. 

On  an  occasion  of  a  visit  from  him  to  my  camp 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          91 

when  I  was  on  topographical  duty,  seated  at  table 
with  Lieutenant  Jeff  Page  and  his  wife  and  Mrs. 
Sands,  I  asked  him  what  the  secretary  of  the  treas- 
ury said  in  regard  to  a  certain  question.  The  re- 
ply of  the  old  gentleman  was,  "  I  do  not  know,  I  did 
not  unbutton  myself  to  him  !  "  Many  of  his  oddities 
were  looked  upon  as  simply  the  eccentricities  of 
genius. 

He  always  had  several  assistants  with  him  when 
he  occupied  his  primary  points  of  triangulation,  and 
his  camp  consisted  of  quite  a  number  of  tents, 
and  they  were  often  visited  by  strangers.  The 
points  chosen  by  him  were  mostly  upon  the  promi- 
nent places  on  the  coast  and  the  most  elevated,  with 
a  view  to  observations  at  a  great  distance. 

Many  of  his  own  countrymen  visiting  us  would 
address  him  in  French,  and  I  recall  one  occasion 
when,  at  his  camp  on  the  highlands  near  Patterson, 
New  Jersey,  one  of  his  guests,  walking  to  the  edge 
of  the  precipice,  and  looking  over,  exclaimed,  "  Eh, 
Monsieur,  vous  vivez  id,  haut  coin  me  Ics  anges  !  " 
"  Oui,  Monsieur,  haut  comine  les  singes  !  "  was  his 
quick  reply,  with  eyes  twinkling  at  the  baldness  of 
his  pun. 

He  could  appreciate  a  joke  as  well  as  ary  of  his 
younger  assistants,  and  on  his  staff,  composed  as  it 
was  of  army  and  navy  officers  and  civilians,  there 
was  generally  an  abundance  of  fun  going  on  when 
duty  was  done,  and  he  would  take  kindly  the  com- 
ments made  upon  even  his  costume,  which  was  of 
loose  white  flannel,  both  summer  and  winter,  he  re- 


92    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

marking  that  wool  would  keep  off  heat  as  well  as 
cold  without  regard  to  the  color  of  the  fabric. 

We  made  Tompkinsville,  Staten  Island,  our  head- 
quarters and  post  office,  renting  an  office  near  the 
landing  in  which  to  do  the  fine  draughting  on  the 
chart  when  the  weather  was  too  inclement  for  work 
upon  the  bar. 

Our  tents  were  pitched  upon  the  beach  of  the 
point  of  Sandy  Hook,  where  the  observers  of  angles 
lived  the  lives  of  Arabs;  whilst  those  who  were  en- 
gaged in  taking  the  soundings  lived  on  board  of 
the  schooner. 

In  trudging  to  our  stations  in  the  morning  I  al- 
ways carried  a  morocco  portefeuille  to  enable  me 
to  keep  up  my  correspondence,  in  which,  since  leaving 
Washington,  I  had  become  much  interested,  so  that 
the  intervals  in  my  work  were  filled  up  in  this  en- 
joyable occupation. 

During  the  season  my  sister  and  her  husband  from 
Louisville  paid  me  a  visit,  taking  rooms  at  the  hotel 
at  Navesink,  the  cupola  of  which  I  occupied  as  a 
triangulatron  point,  and,  boarding  with  them  at  the 
hotel,  whilst  they  were  there,  I  had  a  delightful  time. 
On  Sundays  and  idle  days  I  would  take  them  out  in 
a  boat  after  blue-fish,  which  at  times  would  crowd  in 
shoals  off  the  bar.  It  was  glorious  sport  to  western 
people,  and  very  clean  fishing  for  ladies,  as  the  lines 
required  no  other  bait  than  the  pewter  squid  above 
the  hook,  and  we  sailed  up  and  down  and  across  the 
bar  outside  of  the  inlet,  hauling  in  the  blue-fish  by 
the  dozens  in  a  short  time. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          93 

We  had  very  bad  weather  during  what  was  known 
as  the  "  cold  May  spell."  Winds  were  from  N.  E.  to 
S.  E.  damp  and  disagreeable,  and  so  we  did  very  little 
work  on  the  bar. 

About  the  middle  of  the  month,  after  some  excep- 
tionally hard  gales  at  sea,  a  ship's  launch  or  longboat 
made  its  way  inside  of  Sandy  Hook  under  the  charge 
of  the  carpenter  of  a  brig  that  had  been  wrecked  on  the 
south  side  of  Long  Island.  The  boat  was  laden  with 
the  disabled  portion  of  her  crew,  some  half  a 
dozen  men,  sick  with  scurvy  and  almost  helpless, 
having  with  them  only  a  trifle  of  bedding  and 
provisions  they  managed  to  save. 

We  at  the  camp  were  short  of  provision,  and  at 
the  lighthouse  the  keeper  could  only  keep  them  a 
day.  They  were  in  a  pitiable  plight ;  safe  on  shore, 
but  without  sufficient  provisions  on  this  dreary  beach! 
Those  of  the  men  most  sick  it  was  difficult  to  remove 
from  the  boat,  one  of  them  having  the  skin  and  flesh 
peeling  from  his  limbs.  What  to  do  with  them  was 
the  question. 

I  proposed  torigherwith  the  masts  and  sailsof  our 
tide-keeper's  boat  and,  if  possible,  to  sail  her  up  to 
the  quarantine  station  at  Tompkinsville  and  my  plan 
being  favored,  I  volunteered  to  carry  it  out. 

The  wind  seemed  favorable,  and  we  sailed  away  for 
Staten  Island.  The  tide  turned  when  we  were  about 
one  third  the  way  to  the  Narrows,  and  the  wind 
hauled  more  to  the  northward,  making  the  beating 
against  it  and  the  tide  a  slow  process  in  a  dull  sail- 
ing boat  with  sails  far  too  small  for  it. 


94          FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

After  considerable  effort  to  make  headway  towards 
our  destination  without  much  success  I  determined 
to  put  on  board  one  of  the  vessels  which  had  taken 
refuge  in  the  cove.  So  I  turned  back  and  went  on 
board  of  a  Swedish  brig  before  night  had  overtaken 
us,  getting  the  sick  men  out  of  the  boat  into  more 
comfortable  quarters  for  the  night,  the  captain  giving 
me  the  bunk  of  the  second  mate  in  the  cabin,  which 
was  half  filled  with  cargo. 

He  invited  me  to  partake  of  his  supper,  served  in 
broken  and  stained  crockery  by  his  dirty  cabin  boy. 
The  meal  consisted  of  salt  meat  and  tea,  without 
miik,  a  piece  of  old  newspaper  being  the  sugar-bowl 
which,  when  not  in  use,  was  stowed  on  one  of  the 
knees  overhead.  This  entertainment  in  the  cabin 
made  me  anxious  about  the  sick  men  ;  but  I  found 
them  contented,  glad  doubtless  to  escape  from  the 
confined  space  of  the  open  boat. 

At  daybreak  I  was  glad  to  get  out  of  my  close 
quarters,  it  having  been  impossible  for  me  to  sleep 
on  the  bundles  of  straw  and  oakum  in  the  board 
bunk,  a  mere  shelf  close  up  to  the  deck  ;  so  at  dawn, 
hearing  the  hail  of  a  pilot  who  was  passing,  we  asked 
for  a  tow  up,  and  our  request  being  granted,  we  hast- 
ened to  take  advantage  of  the  tide,  and  were  soon 
spinning  on  our  way ;  and  by  dinner-time  I  was  en- 
abled to  deliver  my  charges  to  the  authorities  at  the 
quarantine  station. 

I  found  our  schooner  "Jersey"  at  anchor  off 
Tompkinsville  wharf,  and  joined  my  friends  in  a 
hearty  and  truly  welcome  meal,  contented  with  my 


FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL.    95 

share  in  the  relief  of  the  shipwrecked  men,  which 
brought  me  into  comfortable  quarters  during  the 
prevalence  of  the  bad  weather,  as  it  was  some  time 
before  we  could  get  to  work,  and  camp  life  is  not  the 
pleasantest  in  wet  easterly  weather. 

In  September  the  weather  was  not  favorable  to 
our  operations,  and  we  began  to  think  of  striking 
tents  and  returning  to  winter  quarters ;  but  the  in- 
terest evinced  in  the  work  decided  Captain  Gedney 
to  hold  on  yet  awhile  for  a  few  more  days'  work, 
and  we  had  to  put  up  little  stoves  in  our  tents  for 
comfort.  October  was  upon  us  before  we  boarded 
our  schooner  and  sailed  to  the  New  York  Navy  Yard 
to  lay  her  up  for  the  winter,  and  it  was  the  middle 
of  the  month  before  we  reached  Washington. 

My  messmates  had  been  teasing  me  all  the  sum- 
mer about  the  time  when  I  was  to  be  married,  and 
would  not  believe  I  would  wait  for  the  expiration  of 
the  three  years  proposed,  and  Captain  Gedney  even 
predicted  the  day  upon  which  I  would  be  married. 
Oddly  enough,  his  date  was  the  one  we  agreed  upon 
when  I  reached  Washington  ;  so  that  on  the  1 5th  of 
November,  1836,  we  were  married  and  I  was  a  happy 
passed  midshipman  with  the  whole  world  in  a  sling. 

It  was  a  bold  step,  but  not  once  regretted,  although 
taken  at  the  very  beginning  of  my  career  ;  this  I  am 
sure  is  a  very  modest  way  of  putting  it.  It  filled 
my  whole  life  with  happiness,  and  proved  such  a 
blessing  to  rne  that  my  experience  made  me  advise 
my  sons  not  to  let  more  than  twenty-five  years  of 
their  life  pass  without  selecting  the  partners  of 
life's  trials  and  happiness. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

JOIN  ASSISTANT  CHARLES  RENARD'S  PARTY  IN  THE 
FIELD — CONTINUE  OUR  PLANE-TABLE  SURVEY- 
ING ON  COAST. 

JANUARY,  1837,  found  us  all  well  up  in  our  office- 
work  and  satisfied  with  the  result  of  our  summer 
season  on  the  coast — the  practicability  of  the 
Gedney  channel  being  more  fully  demonstrated  for 
vessels  of  greater  draught  of  water  than  had  ever 
entered  New  York.  This,  of  course,  was  gratifying 
to  all  who  had  anything  to  do  with  making  the  fact 
known.  Success  had  made  us  interested  in  the  work, 
and  we  had  begun  to  compare  chances  for  better- 
ment in  this  service  as  we  speculated  upon  the  pos- 
sibility of  delay  in  receiving  promotion  in  the  regu- 
lar service,  and  we  looked  upon  the  coast  survey 
as  "  good  holding  ground,"  especially  as  we  had 
been  promised  a  prospect  of  extra  pay  for  our 
services  in  the  coast  survey,  which  added  to  its  at- 
tractiveness, and  kept  us  upon  it  as  long  as  the  navy 
department  would  permit. 

When  the  winter's  work  in  the  office  was  con- 
cluded I  was,  in  May,  transferred  from  hydrograph- 

ical  to  topographical  work,  joining  the  plane-table 
96 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          97 

party  of  Assistant  Charles  Renard,  as  sub-assistant. 
My  friend  Jenkins  had  been  with  this  party  the  pre- 
ceding year,  and  now  had  a  party  of  his  own,  so  I 
took  his  place. 

The  plane-table  was  a  new  instrument  then  to 
this  country  for  practical  topography,  and  even 
West  Point  officers  preferred  the  chain  and  com- 
pass for  details  of  the  coast.  But  it  was  used  for 
topography  in  Switzerland  and  in  the  ordnance  sur- 
vey of  England,  and  having  been  adopted  by  Mr. 
Hassler,  nothing  remained  for  us  but  to  be  taught 
its  use. 

Fortunately  a  young  Swiss  emigrant  was  found 
who  had  recently  landed  and  was  familiar  with  this 
work  in  his  native  land,  and  who  had  been  employed 
at  it  in  the  topographical  survey  of  France.  He 
was  at  once  placed  in  charge  of  the  first  plane-table 
party,  and  we  were  glad  to  serve  with  him  for  the 
sake  of  the  instruction  he  could  give  us.  When  I 
joined  the  party  we  entered  upon  the  survey  of 
New  York  Bay  and  its  environments. 

We  camped  with  our  party,  consisting  of  the  ob- 
server's instrument-bearer,  chainmen  and  flagmen, 
at  a  number  of  different  places,  including  Governor's. 
Island,  Berriman's  Island,  near  Flushing  Bay,  Elysian 
Fields,  Hoboken,  Fort  Lee  on  the  Hudson  and 
West  Chester  on  the  Harlem. 

I  left  Mrs.  Sands  in  Brooklyn,  where  I  could  join 

her  every  Saturday  evening.     In  June  we  made  a 

visit  to  West  Point,  where  my  brother-in-law,  Cadet 

William  H.  French,  was  about  to  graduate,  and  he 

7 


98    FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

afterwards  joined  us  in  Brooklyn  for  a  few  weeks  of 
the  season. 

The  first  summer  after  my  marriage  passed  very 
quickly,  and  I  had  become  so  much  interested  in 
the  new  duty  that  I  had  thoughts  of  adopting  that 
as  my  profession. 

The  chief  of  my  party,  a  superior  draughtsman 
and  an  adept  in  the  use  of  his  instrument,  ap- 
peared to  take  some  interest  in  giving  me  all  the 
information  and  instruction  I  desired,  in  return  for 
which  I  helped  him  to  acquire  some  knowledge  of 
English,  since,  prior  to  his  landing  in  New  York  the 
preceding  season,  he  was  unable  to  converse  in 
anything  but  French.  As  our  men  were  all  Swiss 
or  French,  even  the  cook,  I  had  to  rub  up  my  French, 
also,  to  my  great  improvement  ;  and  so  we  lived  hap- 
pily and  well  in  our  camp,  and  the  time  passed  very 
pleasantly. 

My  chief,  Mr.  Hassler,  was  a  great  admirer  of  our 
form  of  government,  and  had  been  compelled  to  leave 
his  own  canton  Neuchatel  because  of  political  differ- 
ences with  the  authorities  relative  to  the  Prussian  in- 
fluence in  the  government,  and  that  dominant  party 
feeling  followed  him  everywhere.  Although  he  had 
obtained  employment  on  the  government  surveys 
of  France,  he  was  obliged  to  leave  secretly  and  escape 
to  this  country. 

Here  he  was  safe,  with  every  prospect  of  quick  ad- 
vancement in  the  work  on  which  he  was  now  engaged, 
and  I  considered  myself  fortunate  in  being  of  the 
party  under  such  an  expert. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.          99 

The  winter  saw  us  again  in  office-work  in  Washing- 
ton, and  I  had  become  indoctrinated  in  the  European 
methods  of  conducting  topographical  work,  and  it  is 
needless  to  say  that  having  been  almost  enamored  of 
the  work,  I  did  not  fail  to  take  advantage  of  them. 

I  made  as  much  as  possible  out  of  our  winter's 
office-work,  preparing  myself  for  the  time  when  I 
should  succeed  to  the  charge  of  a  party,  and  my  chief 
gave  me  every  facility  to  become  proficient,  and  en- 
couraged my  efforts  by  whatever  instruction  was 
needed,  being  himself  now  secure  in  his  own  position 
and  being  such  an  accomplished  draughtsman 
and  so  expert  in  the  use  of  the  plane-table  as  to  make 
him  virtually  at  the  head  of  that  department  of  the 
surveying  work. 

The  plane-table  had  become  very  popular  with  us 
all,  being  a  most  handy  instrument  for  topographi- 
cal work,  and  a  great  economy  in  time,  since  we 
could,  upon  the  prepared  sheets,  place  down  all  the 
features  of  the  country  and  the  details  of  its  topog- 
raphy in  pencil  as  we  progressed,  ready  for  inking 
in  office-work,  without  the  necessity  of  notes  to  be 
summarized  at  night  and  blotted  with  errors  to  be 
corrected  on  the  succeeding  day  in  the  field  as  was 
usually  the  case  when  working  with  the  surveyor's 
compass  and  chain. 

Upon  the  plane-table  the  work  was  done  upon 
the  spot,  and  proved  itself  as  we  went  on,  errors,  if 
any,  being  promptly  and  easily  detected  and  cor- 
rected before  moving  the  instrument  from  the  spot, 
thus  making  the  sheet  ready  for  the  ink  when  removed, 


100       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

to  be  replaced  by  others  in  succession  during  the 
season  as  we  progressed. 

Moreover  we  felt  the  great  relief  this  instrument 
gave  us  when  we  returned  to  the  camp  at  the  end  of 
each  day's  work ;  there  was  a  certainty  that  the  work 
was  correct,  and  as  it  did  not  require  revision  we 
could  always  enjoy  the  rest  and  relaxation  that 
followed  upon  a  good  day's  work  in  the  field. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CAPTAIN  KIDD'S  TREASURE — SURVEY  WORK  ON 
SOUTH  SHORE  OF  LONG  ISLAND— GO  TO  NEW 
LONDON,  CONNECTICUT,  TO  SURVEY — OUR  HOSTS 
DURING  THAT  SEASON. 

BY  the  month  of  January,  1838,  we  were  well  up 
with  our  office-work  and  looking  forward  to  the  fit- 
ting out  of  parties  for  the  coming  summer's  cam- 
paign, so  we  all  set  to  work  stretching  paper,  mak- 
ing projections  and  putting  in  the  triangulation 
points  for  the  summer  work. 

By  May  we  were  in  camp  again.  Beginning  at 
Flatbush  on  Long  Island  for  the  topography  of  the 
south  shore  of  that  island,  we  continued  along  the 
post  road  at  the  northern  boundary  of  our  coast- 
work,  filling  in  the  details  between  it  and  the  shore- 
line, and  furnishing  points  and  shore  line  to  the 
hydrographic  party. 

We  shifted  camp  every  ten  or  twelve  miles,  finish- 
ing up  the  work  as  we  went,  and  pitched  our  tents 
at  the  most  convenient  locations — convenient  to  sup- 
plies and  post-offices,  Babylon,  Amagansett,  East 
and  West  Hempstead,  and  Montauk  Point  being 
each  occupied  during  the  summer  by  our  party. 

101 


REEFED  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 


Whilst  walking  along  the  shore  near  Babylon  as 
our  work  progressed,  Mr.  Renard  and  I  were  on  one 
occasion  amusing  ourselves  skipping  flat  pebbles 
into  the  sea,  watching  them  as  they  glanced  from 
ripple  to  ripple  on  the  water,  when  just  as  I  was 
about  to  launch  one  I  felt  that  it  was  unusually 
heavy,  and  curiosity  made  me  examine  it.  After 
some  little  rubbing  I  found  it  to  be  a  Spanish  dollar 
of  date  1  700.  The  edge  was  almost  sharpened  by  fric- 
tion on  the  sandy  beach.  The  discovery  prevented 
the  throwing  of  pebbles  that  had  not  been  weighed 
and  examined.  That  particular  find  was  placed  dans 
mapoche  as  a  lucky  piece,  but  unluckily  it  went,  with 
a  quantity  of  other  silver  some  years  later,  into  the 
pocket  of  a  burglar  who  helped  himself  to  what  I 
had. 

On  returning  to  camp  with  it  that  afternoon,  it 
was  held  to  be  one  of  Captain  Kidd's  dollars,  and 
the  sight  of  it  revived  many  stories  of  search  for  the 
Pirate's  hidden  treasure,  as  it  was  claimed  that 
this  neighborhood  was  one  of  his  favorite  resorts. 

One  old  fisherman  told  me  of  his  grappling  a  bag 
of  money  with  his  tongs  whilst  fishing  for  oysters 
off  the  inlet  ;  that  feeling  something  heavy,  and 
knowing  that  shell-fish  could  not  be  so  weighty,  he 
became  excited  as  it  was  hauled  near  to  the  sur- 
face ;  and,  finding  its  weight  diminishing,  he  quick- 
ened his  movements  and  giving  a  vigorous  jerk  into 
the  boat  found  remaining  in  the  teeth  of  his  tongs 
only  the  tied  end  of  an  old  canvas  bag  and  two  or 
three  Spanish  dollars. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        IO3 

He  concluded  that  he  had  first  gotten  hold  of  a 
sack  of  Kidd's  treasure,  which  had  been  thrown 
overboard  upon  approaching  the  coast  in  a  boat  in 
bad  weather. 

He  marked  the  place  by  bearings,  and  frequently 
repeated  the  search,  but  without  the  slightest  subse- 
quent success. 

In  this  connection  I  will  here  relate  an  incident 
which  occurred  to  Mr.  Renard  the  following  season. 

There  was  a  wild  excitement  in  the  papers  of  the 
day  about  a  discovery  of  some  of  Kidd's  treasure 
on  the  beach  near  Babylon  by  a  countryman,  who 
was  trudging  along  the  beach  after  a  gale,  which 
was  a  common  custom  on  this  coast,  in  hopes  of 
picking  up  driftings  from  the  sea.  He  saw  on  a 
sand-hill  half  blown  away  by  the  gale,  some  pieces 
of  old  canvas  which,  upon  inspection,  proved  to  be 
bags  with  money  scattered  about,  to  secure  which 
he  hurried  home  and,  bringing  a  cart,  carried  off  his 
treasure  trove.  Some  of  the  neighbors  got  wind  of 
it,  and  the  whole  region  was  up  and  out  on  the 
search,  with  no  greater  success  than  a  few  old 
silver  dollars  and  canvas  bags,  which,  however,  but 
served  to  keep  up  the  excitement  for  some  months 
afterwards. 

Mr.  Renard,  seeing  the  news  in  the  papers,  at  once 
recognized  from  the  description  given  that  we  had 
gone  over  the  place  in  our  survey  ;  so  hiring  a  buggy 
he  started  for  the  locality,  and,  sure  enough,  it  was 
that  very  hill  upon  which  I  had  erected  a  signal  for 
our  survey.  The  hill  having  been  partly  blown 


104       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

away  showed  where  the  treasure  deposit  was  made, 
which  was  within  three  feet  of  the  hole  dug  for  the 
signal-staff,  which  lay  there  upon  the  top  of  the 
hill. 

In  his  letter  to  me  telling  of  the  fact  Mr.  Renard 
expressed  his  wonder  that  I  had  not  placed  my 
signal  pole  three  feet  nearer  the  hidden  treasure, 
it  being  said  that  the  lucky  finder  had  carried  off 
in  his  cart  some  fifteen  thousand  dollars  ! 

After  finishing  the  east  end  of  Long  Island,  we 
transported  the  camp  and  party  to  New  London, 
Connecticut,  and  camped  upon  the  land  of  Mr. 
Sands  Champion,  into  whose  family  I  was  welcomed 
when  they  heard  my  name. 

The  daughter,  I  found  out,  was  a  Catholic,  the 
only  one  of  the  family  being  a  convert,  and  this 
was  to  me  an  additional  tie  of  friendship,  as  my  wife 
was  a  Catholic. 

Our  camp  was  six  miles  west  of  New  London, 
but  I  was  not  there  long  before  I  was  directed  to 
take  charge  of  the  topographical  party  at  New 
Haven,  then  under  Lieutenant  John  Farley,  U.  S. 
Artillery,  who  was  transferred  to  triangulation 
duty. 

Having  some  work  designated  for  our  party  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut  River,  I  proceeded 
to  New  Haven  to  bring  the  men  to  my  new  local- 
ity for  work.  As  the  season  was  so  near  its  close  I 
stored  the  camp  equipage  in  the  city  and  occupied 
farmhouses  with  our  whole  party  near  Lyme. 

Near  that  village  I  found  a  family  who  agreed  to 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        IO5 

take  me  to  board,  and  Judge  Griswold  permitted 
his  fanner  to  take  my  men  to  board  in  the  kitchen 
with  their  sleeping  apartments  overhead. 

The  Judge  made  me  comfortable  in  a  room  ad- 
joining his  parlor,  his  farmer  supplying  my  meals 
in  my  own  apartment. 

This  arrangement  with  the  farmer  was  because  of 
a  custom  permitting  such  employees  to  earn  an 
honest  penny  outside  of  their  farm  work  when  it 
did  not  interfere  therewith,  and  this  period  being 
the  beginning  of  the  fall,  there  was  no  other  farm 
work  than  the  gathering  and  shucking  of  corn. 

The  farmer  was  soon  to  be  off  for  his  winter  em- 
ployment, that  of  colporteur, — or,  as  he  called  it,  the 
book-business  around  the  state, — and  he  spent  the 
severer  part  of  the  winter  in  shoemaking,  devoting 
the  summer  to  farming,  in  which  Judge  Griswold 
employed  him. 

We  lived  there  in  considerable  comfort ;  my  pri- 
vacy was  all  that  I  could  have  desired  ;  and  I  shall 
never  forget  that  delicious  light  gingerbread  of  the 
farmer's  wife,  made  for  us  to  take  with  us  for  our 
lunch  whilst  surveying  at  a  distance  from  the  farm. 
We  would  be  up  at  sunrise  and  off  to  our  work, 
returning  to  a  good  hot  dinner  with  a  supper  at 
sunset,  with  one  of  the  girl  "  helps  "  of  the  neigh- 
borhood to  wait  upon  me. 

I  was  enabled  to  complete  the  work  assigned  me 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut,  and  up  the  river 
as  far  as  Lyme  on  the  left  bank  and  Saybrook  on 
the  right,  including  the  coast  to  the  eastward  as 


106       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

far  as  Black  Point,  joining  the  work  of  Mr.  Renard 
from  New  London  ;  then  discharging  my  crew  until 
the  next  summer,  I  returned  to  Washington  for 
office-work,  and  had  the  happiness  of  holding  in  my 
arms  my  first-born  son  (about  three  months  old)  for 
the  first  time. 

Being  at  this  time  in  charge  of  an  independent 
party,  my  duties  with  Mr.  Renard  were  severed,  and 
I  had  my  own  time  to  arrange  as  I  saw  fit.  I  con- 
cluded to  pay  another  visit  to  old  Kentucky  with 
my  family,  returning  in  time  for  the  next  season's 
field  work,  the  inking  in  of  my  recent  work  not 
occupying  very  much  of  rny  time. 

Starting  before  the  cold  weather  set  in  we  crossed 
the  Alleghanies,  being  two  days  and  a  night  in  the 
stage,  excepting  two  hours  when  resting  at  Frost- 
burg,  where  we  found  no  team  to  take  us  further, 
and  we  were  compelled  to  lay  by  in  the  miserable 
tavern  until  daylight,  when  we  were  off  again,  and 
arrived  at  Wheeling  in  time  to  meet  a  boat  coming 
down  from  Pittsburg,  in  which  we  made  ourselves 
comfortable  for  the  trip  down  the  Ohio  River. 

Finding  on  board  some  agreeable  parties  with 
whom  we  were  acquainted,  our  time  passed  very 
pleasantly. 

At  Cincinnati  we  changed  boats  for  a  larger  one, 
which  presented  more  commodious  quarters  for  us, 
and  reaching  Louisville  we  received  a  warm  greet- 
ing from  my  sister,  who  insisted  upon  our  stopping 
with  them  in  the  old  home  on  Green  Street,  where 
we  were  soon  domiciled  for  the  winter,  the  ice  in 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        IO7 

the   river  soon  closing   navigation  and   ending  all 
travel. 

As  this  was  the  first  time  my  Kentucky  people 
had  seen  my  wife,  it  was  more  like  a  bridal  trip 
than  anything  else,  the  three-months'  baby  giving 
us  more  responsibility,  however,  and  occupation. 

My  western  friends  made  our  sojourn  a  very 
agreeable  one,  and  daily  visits  to  my  parents  made 
it  yet  more  happy,  and  the  delight  of  my  aged 
father  and  mother  during  these  visits  of  my  wife 
was  very  gratifying  to  me. 

One  of  my  old  schoolmates,  George  Gray,  who 
had  married  about  the  same  time  as  I  had,  proposed 
a  fight  between  our  two  boys ;  but  when  he  saw  them 
together,  and  that  mine  was  so  much  larger,  he  pro- 
nounced the  fight  off  unless  his  boy  could  have  a 
pin  to  make  things  even,  which  manner  of  handicap- 
ping did  not  meet  the  views  of  the  mammas,  and  so 
the  contest  was  declared  "  a  draw  "  without  their 
coming  to  the  "  scratch." 

At  one  of  my  sister's  evening  entertainments  I 
witnessed  the  embarrassing  meeting  of  a  pair  be- 
tween whom  it  was  thought  there  had  been  at  one 
time  a  tacit  engagement  to  marry. 

The  gentleman,  one  of  our  handsomest  naval  offi- 
cers, had  just  returned  from  sea  to  find  his  lady-love, 
one  of  Cincinnati's  wealthiest  belles,  the  bride  of 
another.  That  officer  was  a  Kentuckian  also,  his 
father  being  a  special  friend  of  General  Lafayette, 
and  himself  a  general  favorite  in  society  in  Louis- 
ville. The  first  time  I  saw  his  father  was  at  the 


I08   FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

steamboat  landing  below  the  falls  of  the  Ohio,  on  the 
occasion  of  the  visit  of  Marquis  de  Lafayette  to  the 
west,  and  the  two  were  in  each  other's  arms,  evi- 
dently each  happy  at  meeting  the  other. 

The  entertainment  on  this  occasion  had  been  given 
to  the  bride  and  groom,  and  Lieutenant  Radford, 
U.  S.  N.  (who  subsequently  distinguished  himself 
at  Fort  Fisher),  united  with  me  and  several  other 
friends  and  brought  about  a  meeting  between  the 
parties  and  reconciled  all  differences,  preventing 
further  embarrassment. 

It  appeared  that  the  groom  being  a  civilian  had 
utilized  all  the  advantage  that  was  his  of  being  on 
the  ground,  and  by  energetic  wooing  in  his  rival's 
absence  at  sea  on  duty,  succeeded  in  carrying  off 
the  prize — and  a  great  prize  she  proved  to  be  in  all 
respects.  She  became  the  mother  of  a  happy  family, 
and  was  a  general  favorite  in  a  large  circle  of  friends, 
whilst  he  had  to  give  up  all  of  his  own  business  to 
find  time  to  look  after  the  immense  fortune  she  in- 
herited on  the  death  of  her  father. 

The  hospitalities  of  our  friends  in  Louisville  made 
the  time  glide  swiftly  by. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

SURVEY  OF  COAST  OF  NEW  JERSEY — CAMP  LIFE 
AMONGST  THE  NATIVES  OF  THE  JERSEY  MARSHES 
— OFF  BARNEGAT — PLEASANT  TIMES  AND  PLENTY 
OF  WORK — MRS.  SANDS  OVERBOARD  IN  LITTLE 
EGG  HARBOR — HER  RESCUE. 

JANUARY,  1839,  set  us  to  thinking  of  our  return 
east,  but  the  ice  blockade  compelled  us  to  remain  in 
Louisville  until  the  spring  thaw  and  the  opening 
of  the  barrier  of  ice  ;  so  we  continued,  with  clear 
consciences  and  undiminished  zest,  to  enjoy  the 
hospitalities  showered  upon  us  by  our  western 
friends. 

In  February,  however,  a  thaw  came,  and  navigation 
was  again  resumed  on  the  river.  Taking  leave  of 
our  friends  we  soon  started  on  our  return  east,  where 
I  was  to  return  to  my  duties.  At  Cincinnati  we 
transferred  our  baggage  to  a  smaller  steamer  for  the 
up-river  navigation.  This  trip  up  was  not  nearly  so 
pleasant  as  our  downward  voyage  in  the  fall,  the 
boat  being  smaller,  and  the  floating  ice  we  had  to 
contend  with  made  it  more  tedious.  On  reaching 
Wheeling,  to  cross  the  mountains  we  took  stage  and 
safely  reached  Washington  in  ample  time  for  me  to 

109 


110       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

begin  my  preparations  for  the  field,  and  to  finish  up 
the  little  office-work  remaining  of  the  Connecticut 
River  topography  of  last  fall. 

My  detail  this  season  was  for  the  Atlantic  Coast 
of  New  Jersey  below  Long  Branch,  the  latter  part 
of  the  coast  having  been  apportioned  to  my  old 
friend  and  chief,  Mr.  Renard. 

This  part  of  the  coast  about  Barnegat  had  gained 
a  bad  reputation,  because  of  the  frequent  recur- 
rence of  wrecks  there  and  the  robberies  and  mur- 
ders accompanying  them.  The  wrecks  were  usu- 
ally caused  by  false  lights  shown  by  the  natives 
to  lure  vessels  to  their  destruction,  when  the  whole 
neighborhood  would  turn  out  in  force,  robbing,  and 
maltreating  the  victims  of  their  treachery  without 
pity,  their  conduct  bringing  upon  the  inhabitants 
the  odious  name  of  Barnegat  Pirates. 

It  was,  therefore,  deemed  advisable  for  our  two 
parties  to  keep  together  as  much  as  possible,  at 
least  when  near  the  most  dangerous  part  of  the 
coast,  that  we  might  have  mutual  protection  in  our 
numbers,  not  expecting  to  be  treated  as  welcome 
visitors  for  many  reasons. 

Being  officers  of  the  government,  we  were  quite 
naturally  regarded  with  suspicious  and  jealous  eyes 
by  the  natives,  as  being  possible  spies  sent  to  break 
up  their  nefarious  calling,  and  as  surveyors  we  were 
to  give  to  the  commercial  world  such  correct  charts 
as  would  point  out  all  the  dangerous  shoals  and 
currents  of  the  coast,  thus  giving  to  the  navigators 
such  knowledge  as  would  enable  them  to  avoid 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        Ill 

danger  of  shipwreck,  and  make  it  more  difficult  for 
the  wreckers  to  mislead  them. 

Our  experience,  however,  was  quite  different  from 
our  anticipations,  the  people  there  keeping  aloof 
from  us  altogether  and  in  no  wise  troubling  us. 

We  found  great  difficulty  in  bringing  the  tri- 
angulation  over  from  the  western  part  of  the  state 
through  the  pines,  because  of  the  level  formation  of 
the  country  which  afforded  but  few  triangulation 
points. 

A  side  of  one  of  the  triangles  near  the  coast  was 
taken  as  a  base,  and  Mr.  Renard  was  to  carry  down 
a  series  of  tertiary  triangles  as  far  as  he  could  with 
accuracy  for  topographical  and  hydrographical  use 
along  the  coast  for  the  season,  by  which  time  we 
could  be  furnished  with  a  series  of  secondary  points 
from  the  Delaware  valley.  Renard  was,  also,  to  do 
the  coast  shore  line  as  far  as  Barnegat,  whilst  the 
rest  of  the  topography  was  assigned  to  my  party. 

In  this  work  we  encamped  as  near  to  each  other 
as  possible.  Mr.  Renard  had  as  much  work  as  he 
could  possibly  attend  to,  whilst  I  came  along  more 
leisurely,  having  to  wait  for  the  points  to  be  estab- 
lished by  his  triangulation. 

I  had  more  ground  to  go  over,  having  more  in- 
terior detail  near  Shrewsbury.  In  this  way  we  pro- 
gressed to  Barnegat  Inlet,  our  last  camp  together, 
and  for  the  first  time  I  brought  my  family  and 
nursery-maid  to  this  camp,  having  passed  by  the 
most  dreary  part  of  the  coast. 

Renard,  also,  had  his  family  with  him,  sleeping, 


112       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

as  we  did,  in  tents, — a  life  to  which  they  were  accus- 
tomed from  their  experience  of  the  last  season.  My 
wife  had  had  no  such  training,  and  at  first  I  sought 
out  quarters  in  a  tavern  near  by,  taking  our  meals 
in  tents  with  our  own  servants  to  see  to  everything 
for  us. 

One  night  in  the  tavern  sufficed  us  as  an  ex- 
perience, the  room  assigned  us  being  over  the  kitchen 
oven.  After  a  sleepless  night  for  ourselves  and 
a  most  fretful  one  for  our  poor  babe,  we  arose  at 
daylight  to  see  armies  of  bedbugs  traveling  up  the 
partitions  which  separated  us  from  the  other  rooms, 
thus  solving  the  mystery  of  our  sleeplessness  and 
the  restlessness  of  the  little  one. 

The  next  day  I  kept  all  hands  in  camp  preparing 
tents  for  my  little  family,  in  which  we  took  up  our 
abode  night  and  day  ;  and  with  the  gift  of  mosquito 
bars  from  Mr.  Renard,  we  made  our  tents  very 
habitable.  When  we  reached  a  more  civilized 
part  of  the  country  we  procured  scantling  and 
planks  with  which  we  made  flooring  for  our  tents, 
in  which  we  lived,  at  that  season,  in  more  comfort 
than  we  could  have  found  in  the  close,  warm  houses 
of  the  farmers. 

As  we  proceeded  on  our  work  down  the  coast 
road  we  found  more  villages,  and  the  farms  were 
closer  together,  which  gave  us  increased  facilities  in 
selecting  our  camping  ground  as  we  changed  from 
place  to  place.  We  usually  selected  some  orchard 
near  a  well  or  spring,  and  we  procured  plentiful 
supplies  of  butter  and  milk  and  eggs  from  the  farm- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        113 

houses,  our  other  stores  being  procured  first  from 
New  York  and  later  by  stage  from  Philadelphia 
across  the  country. 

Our  encampments  were  some  ten  or  twelve  miles 
apart,  our  surveying  taking  up  the  land  by  the  coast 
and  road,  five  miles  north  from  the  camp  and  five 
miles  south,  and  when  that  was  worked  in  we  would 
fix  upon  another  camp,  ten  miles  or  so  further  south, 
and  thus  through  the  season  proceed  with  our  sur- 
veying, creating,  as  we  moved,  quite  a  sensation 
amongst  the  natives  by  reason  of  our  caravan,  which 
was  necessarily  quite  extensive. 

For  my  family  I  had  two  large  tents  making  my 
mess  room  and  living  room,  another  for  my  servant 
nurse,  a  tarpaulin  (painted  canvas)  kitchen  tent 
with  cooking  stove  and  a  store  tent  for  the  steward 
and  cook.  For  the  five  men  composing  my  party — 
a  chainman,  flagmen  and  carrier  of  my  instrument 
—I  had  two  larger  sleeping  tents  and  a  mess  tent. 

In  the  intervals  between  office  and  field  work  Mr. 
Renard  had  the  kindness  to  see  my  tents  fitted  with 
"  Swiss-flies  "  coming  down  to  within  a  foot  of  the 
ground,  and  closing  in  front  and  rear  at  night,  the 
flaps  being  propped  up  with  poles  by  day  for  shade. 
For  bedsteads  I  procured  ships'  swinging  hospital 
cots,  supported  between  uprights  on  cross  foot 
pieces,  steadiness  and  strength  being  secured  by 
screwing  them  to  pieces  of  scantling.  When  these 
were  covered  with  nets  we  were  wholly  protected 
from  those  pests  of  New  Jersey,  the  mosquitoes. 

A  book-shelf  was  hung  from  one  tent  pole  and 
8 


114       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  mirror  from  the  other,  whilst  a  portable  stand 
was  placed  in  the  center  of  the  tent.  Later  in  the 
season  a  very  pretty  boudoir  was  connected  to  this 
tent  under  the  fly  for  my  wife's  especial  use  ;  and 
the  tent  floor  being  covered  with  painted  oilcloth 
made  it  more  homelike,  and  increased  our  appre- 
ciation of  this  gypsy  mode  of  passing  the  summer, 
until  we  became  content  to  extend  our  stay  into 
the  fall  season,  setting  up  a  small  sheet-iron  stove 
for  use  in  the  early  mornings  and  evenings,  when  a 
few  chips  would  suffice  to  make  our  apartments  as 
warm  as  toast. 

Having  her  guitar  with  us  and  the  latest  maga- 
zines published,  Mrs.  Sands  found  it  easy  to  be  as 
happy  as  a  bird,  even  when  I  was  absent  and  at 
work. 

After  breakfast,  at  sunrise,  I,  with  my  men,  would 
start  off  and  take  our  lunch  at  noon,  perhaps  miles 
away  from  camp,  to  return  at  sundown,  for  dinner, 
which,  with  a  pretty  bouquet  upon  our  table,  was 
always  ready  for  us  as  soon  as  we  could  change  our 
dress. 

Our  camp  changes  were  usually  made  at  the  end 
of  a  week  or  two,  so  as  to  give  us  part  of  Saturday 
and  all  day  Sunday  to  get  settled  down  in  our  new 
location. 

We  could  get  breakfast  by  daylight,  strike  the 
tents  and  load  the  wagons,  taking  some  four  or  five 
for  equipage  and  stores  with  the  men,  and  a  spring 
carnage  for  myself  and  family  and  the  instruments  ; 
and,  proceeding  down  the  coast  some  ten  or  twelve 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        Il5 

miles  to  the  new  location,  we  could  have  our  kitchen 
and  mess  tents  pitched  ready  for  dinner  by  two  or 
three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

When  a  change  took  place  on  Saturday,  as  was 
generally  the  case,  it  \vas  quite  a  sensation  in  the 
neighborhood.  The  cry  would  be  raised  among  the 
natives,  "  Here  comes  the  sarwayers,  with  the  cap- 
ting  and  his  'oman  leading."  Then  the  singing 
schools,  which  always  took  place  that  day  of  the 
week,  would  open  their  doors  and  out  would  pour 
all  the  young  men  and  women  who  had  been  prac- 
tising hymns  for  Sunday. 

Sometimes  the  first  woman  they  saw  would  be 
our  colored  nurse  arranging  the  furniture  in  the  tent, 
and  they  would  take  her  to  be  the  capting's  wife 
and  express  surprise  at  her  being  black,  until  Mrs. 
Sands  would  appear  in  the  tent  and  undeceive 
them. 

To  the  southward  of  Barnegat  the  settlements 
became  more  numerous,  and  we  made  it  conven- 
ient to  camp  near  them,  and  found  the  inhabitants 
very  obliging  and  reasonable  in  their  charges  for 
provisions,  and  disposed  to  exercise  hospitality, 
being  kindly  in  their  intentions  and  genial  in  man- 
ner. 

Towards  the  last  of  September  we  approached 
Tuckertown  and  encamped  there  upon  a  lot  offered 
by  Judge  Tucker,  which  we  hoped  would  be  the 
last  camp  of  the  season.  The  details  of  the  survey 
were  becoming  intricate  and  required  more  time  in 
completing  them.  Our  instructions  were  to  take 


Il6       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  first  post-road  from  the  shore  line  and  to  par- 
allel with  it  for  interior  boundary,  putting  in  all  the 
details  upon  and  between  it  and  the  shore  line. 
The  latter  was  a  barren  beach  of  sand  hills,  mostly 
narrow  and  cut  up  by  inlets,  with  a  wide  salt  marsh 
between  it  and  the  fast  land,  upon  which  ran  the 
post-road  where  we  encamped  among  the  arable 
fields  near  the  farm-houses. 

This  salt  marsh  was  cut  up  by  innumerable  thor- 
oughfares or  tidal  creeks,  making  it  tedious  work 
surveying,  as  the  chain  could  seldom  be  used,  and  a 
boat  was  necessary  to  carry  the  party  with  our  in- 
struments from  point  to  point  in  the  work,  using 
the  "  three  point  problem  "  in  accomplishing  it. 

By  employing  men  from  the  vicinity,  I  was  able 
to  get  the  names  of  localities  with  accuracy,  in  the 
familiar  nomenclature  of  the  neighborhoods,  and  it 
made  their  remarks  quite  amusing  as  we  developed 
the  windings  of  these  creeks  in  the  progress  of  the 
day's  work. 

"That's  Bill's  Duck-blinds,"  said  one.  "There's 
Sal's  Cut,"  said  another.  "This  is  Tom's  Creek, 
Nan's  Thoroughfare,"  etc.,  etc.,  and  I  jotted  down 
all  the  familiar  names  of  the  place,  to  be  faithfully 
recorded  on  the  map  as  we  went  along. 

By  October  we  had  finished  our  work  at  Tucker- 
town,  and  had  run  the  shore  line  of  that  side  of 
Little  Egg  Harbor,  when  we  had  to  cross  that  Bay  in 
sloops  to  transport  our  equipage  to  the  other  side, 
that  we  might  finish  the  season  with  the  completion 
of  the  Bay  shore  line. 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        117 

At  this  time  occurred  what  might  have  been  a 
serious  catastrophe  in  the  closing  of  our  work.  Two 
sloops  were  required  to  convey  our  party,  one  for 
myself  and  family  and  the  lighter  portions  of  our 
equipage,  the  other  for  the  general  camp  outfit  and 
part  of  the  men — some  of  them  having  preceded 
us  in  my  boat  to  hunt  up  teams  to  meet  us  at 
the  landing  and  transport  us  to  our  new  camping- 
ground. 

The  great  bay  was  filled  with  flocks  of  wild  ducks 
which,  as  we  approached  them,  would  take  wing  for 
new  feeding-grounds,  in  countless  numbers.  It  was 
a  novel  and  interesting  sight  as  these  immense  flocks 
would  rise  before  our  slow  approach.  The  breeze 
being  gentle  and  light,  Mrs.  Sands  and  I  were  sit- 
ting on  deck,  she  in  her  chair,  wrapped  up  in  her 
cloak,  enjoying  the  scene  around  us,  when  suddenly 
a  "  cat's-paw"  of  wind  struck  the  sails  and  careening 
the  vessel  just  as  Mrs.  Sands  partly  arose  from  her 
chair  to  get  a  better  view,  forgetful  that  she  was 
not  upon  dry  land,  and  overboard  she  went  with 
the  chair. 

This  filled  me  with  horror,  and  at  first  impulse  I 
jumped  over  the  side  after  her,  and  was  beside  her 
almost  as  soon  as  she  reached  the  water.  For- 
tunately I  did  not  lose  my  presence  of  mind,  and 
getting  behind  her,  with  my  hands  under  her  arms, 
as  well  as  her  cloak  would  permit,  I  was  able  to  keep 
her  head  above  water.  The  cloak,  catching  the  wind 
in  her  fall,  served  to  buoy  her  up.  She  did  not 
utter  a  scream,  but  looking  around  caught  sight  of 


Il8       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  chair  near  us  and  called  my  attention  to  it, 
and,  reaching  it,  I  placed  it  before  her  to  grasp. 

It  seemed  to  me  to  be  an  age  before  the  sloop 
rounded  to.  Seeing  their  difficulty  in  casting  loose 
the  little  ducking  skiff  which  was  towing  astern, 
and  realizing  the  extreme  danger  of  our  situation 
as  the  cloak,  becoming  soaked,  was  losing  its  buoy- 
ancy, with  a  prospect  of  carrying  us  both  down,  I 
sang  out  lustily  to  "hurry  up  with  the  boat,"  "  cut 
the  painter !  "  a  thing  they  had  not  thought  of. 

My  anxiety  must  have  given  force  to  my  lungs, 
for  the  men  in  the  advance  boat,  some  two  or  three 
miles  ahead  near  the  landing,  told  me  later  that  they 
had  heard  me  distinctly. 

The  crew  of  the  other  sloop  seemed  completely 
bewildered,  and,  not  taking  in  the  danger  of  our 
situation,  rendered  no  assistance  ;  but  at  last  the  skiff 
neared  us,  and  the  man  in  it  catching  my  wife  by 
the  hand  whilst  I  pushed  her,  she  was  rolled,  as  it 
were,  over  the  stern  of  the  boat  into  it.  As  it 
would  scarcely  hold  more  than  two  it  would  have 
been  overturned  had  we- ventured  to  get  her  over 
the  gunwales,  so  I  held  on  to  the  taffrail. 

Not  a  word  did  she  utter  until  she  saw  my  straw 
hat  floating  by,  when  she  cried,  "  Save  him  !  save  my 
husband  !  "  but  was  quieted  by  my  voice  from  the 
water  just  at  her  back. 

We  were  soon  on  board  the  sloop  again,  thankful 
indeed  for  having  escaped  that  danger. 

It  appeared  to  us  as  though  we  had  been  over- 
board an  hour,  and  taking  my  watch  from  my  pocket 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

to  ascertain  the  hour,  I  found  it  filled  with  water,  of 
course.  Upon  seeing  this  the  master  of  the  sloop 
remarked,  with  the  utmost  simplicity,  "  Why,  cap, 
you  did  not  stop  to  take  off  your  watch,  did  you  ?" 
which  piece  of  coolness  may  account  somewhat  for 
his  tardiness  in  casting  off  the  boat  painter  to  come 
to  our  relief. 

Fortunately  the  sloop  had  a  little  cabin  that  would 
contain  one  person.  Its  little  stove  was  soon  alight 
with  a  snug  fire,  and  Mrs.  Sands  was  enabled  to 
change  her  wet  clothing  for  dry  ;  but  I  allowed  my 
clothes  to  dry  upon  me,  and  although  experiencing 
no  immediate  ill  effects,  caught  a  severe  cold, 
the  effects  of  which  were  such  as  to  make  me  now 
believe  that  it  was  the  precursor  and  primary  cause 
of  my  present  long-enduring  ailment.1 

Landing  at  Leed's  Point,  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Bay,  we  proceeded  to  the  house  of  the  old  Quaker 
farmer  for  whom  the  point  was  named,  leaving  my 
men  to  transport  and  pitch  the  tents  on  the  grounds 
selected  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road.  We  slept 
in  the  house,  but  lived  in  our  tents  in  the  daytime 
for  the  short  period  that  remained  of  our  shore  line 
work  for  this  season  ;  and  before  the  end  of  October 
my  men  were  all  paid  off,  and  we  were  on  our  way 
back  to  Washington. 

1  This  was  written  during  the  last  illness  of  the  author  but  some 
months  prior  to  his  death. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

POPULARITY  OF  THIS  COAST  SURVEY  WORK 
AMONGST  THE  NAVAL  OFFICERS — INCREASED 
DETAIL  OF  OFFICERS  FOR  IT — QUARREL  BETWEEN 
TWO  OFFICERS,  DAVID  D.  PORTER  AND  STEPHEN 
G.  ROWAN— A  DUEL  PREVENTED  BY  THE  SECONDS 
— MY  GRATIFICATION  AT  BEING  ABLE  TO  PRE- 
VENT IT— INTERESTING  SEQUEL  THERETO. 

UNDER  the  energetic  and  intelligent  superintend- 
ence of  Mr.  Hassler,  the  coast  survey  grew  very 
popular,  and  as  the  knowledge  of  its  workings  ex- 
tended, it  became  firmly  established  in  public  favor 
as  a  work  of  great  importance  and  usefulness  to  the 
young  Republic.  Service  upon  it  was  sought  as  a 
most  honorable  employment  for  naval  officers  when 
not  on  duty  in  their  service  at  sea. 

The  brightest  of  the  young  officers  applied  for  this 
duty  as  an  instructive  school  in  a  branch  of  their 
profession  useful  in  peace  or  war,  its  objects  being 
such  as  are  as  beneficial  to  our  navy  as  to  the  com- 
mercial marine,  and  it  being  fitting  and  most  proper 
that  the  naval  officer  should,  as  a  part  of  his  pro- 
fessional training,  be  well  instructed  in  the  methods 
and  purposes  of  the  coast  survey,  not  only  for  the 

I2O 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        121 

profit  immediately  to  be  derived  from  a  thorough 
familiarity  with  our  own  coasts  and  harbors,  but 
for  future  application  of  the  knowledge  thus  at- 
tained, in  the  survey  of  foreign  coasts  and  harbors 
and  in  the  discovery  of  dangers  to  sea-going  vessels 
such  as  were  hitherto  unknown  and  not  suspected. 

This  irruption  of  officers  detailed  for  the  coast 
survey  work  brought  with  it  in  the  month  of  March, 
1840,  a  most  disagreeable  occurrence  in  the  Hydro- 
graphic  office,  to  the  immeasurable  distress  of  all 
hands. 

One  of  the  newcomers  was  in  the  draughting 
room,  partly  seated  upon  the  edge  of  the  draught- 
ing table,  amusing  himself  the  while  prodding  the 
soft  wood  of  the  table  with  the  points  of  a  pair  of 
dividers,  when  the  officer,1  who  was  engaged  in  the 
delicate  work  upon  the  chart  accosted  him  in  sharp 
and  impatient  tones,  calling  on  him  to  put  the  in- 
strument down,  a  request  which  was  not  heeded,  for 
the  misuse  of  the  instrument  was  continued. 

Hot  words  followed,  and  in  anger  the  men  sprang 
upon  each  other  and  clinched,  but  were  immediately 
separated  by  their  friends  who  were  present. 

It  was  an  awkward  position  for  two  officers  known 
to  be  amongst  the  bravest  and  most  determined  in 
the  whole  service.  When  the  occurrence  was  de- 
tailed to  me  I  was  greatly  shocked  and  distressed 
to  the  degree  of  avoidance  of  the  office  the  whole 
of  the  next  day,  for  they  were  both  especial  friends 
of  mine. 

1  Lieut,  (now  Vice- Admiral)  Stephen  C.  Rowan. 


122        FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

On  the  day  following  I  was  met  by  one  of  them,1 
who  immediately  requested  my  services  as  his  friend. 
Seeing  my  reluctance  in  my  expression  he  still  in- 
sisted.  When  I  learned  the  name  of  the  friend  of 
the  other  party  to  the  rencounter  I  reflected  that  he 
was  one  in  whose  fairness  and  justice  I  had  most  im- 
plicit confidence;  and,  he  being,  as  I  was,  a  friend  of 
both  parties,  I  recognized  a  chance  of  arresting  a 
hostile  meeting  and  consented  to  act. 

The  next  day  an  appointment  was  agreed  upon 
between  us,  "  seconds,"  for  a  discussion  of  the  situa- 
tion. The  room  of  a  friend  of  all  parties  was  ac- 
cepted, and  in  the  evening  a  correspondence  was  com- 
menced, all  objectionable  words,  or  such  as  might  be 
the  subject  of  misinterpretation,  being  referred  to 
this  friend  for  kindly  criticism. 

Each  of  us  was,  of  course,  most  sensitive  and 
careful  of  the  honor  of  his  principal,  and  weighed 
words  with  the  greatest  care. 

This  correspondence  was  kept  up  until  the  wee, 
sma'  hours  of  the  morning,  each  party  rejecting  and 
destroying  the  notes  which  were  unacceptable,  un- 
til finally  an  agreement  was  arrived  at,  perfectly  sat- 
isfactory to  both  of  the  seconds,  and  favorably  criti- 
cised by  the  mutual  friend  who  had  placed  his  room 
at  our  disposal. 

We  were  sincerely  gratified  at  arresting  a  hostile 
meeting  between  two  such  officers  (both  recently 
married)  for  so  trivial  a  first  cause. 

Both  were  in  the  wrong  at  the  beginning,  the  sit- 

1  Lieut.  (  now  Admiral)  David  D.  Porter. 


FROM    REEFER   TO'  REAR-ADMIRAL.        123 

uation  being,  however,  rendered  almost  irreparable 
by  subsequent  intemperate  words  and  actions, 
prompted  by  passion  on  the  one  hand  and  obstinacy 
on  the  other,  until  matters  had  come  to  so  serious 
a  pass  as  almost  to  preclude  the  possibility  of  a  set- 
tlement except  by  resort  to  the  field  of  honor. 

It  was  fortunate  for  both  parties,  and  for  the  good 
of  the  country,  that  by  the  interposition  of  good 
and  judicious  friends  a  serious  encounter  was  pre- 
vented, since  it  would  have  been  no  child's  play 
had  the  parties  been  brought  to  a  hostile  meet- 
ing, they  being  most  brave  and  determined  men, 
and  both,  for  their  great  and  distinguished  services 
in  battle,  crowning  long  and  efficient  service,  have 
attained  to  the  very  highest  ranks  in  the  Navy. 

We  who  aided  in  this  settlement  have  seen  the 
justice  of  our  action  (the  other  second  unhappily 
died  before  the  war  of  the  rebellion).  I  am  espe- 
cially proud  of  my  share  in  the  affair,  and  whenever  I 
meet  either  of  the  principals  I  rejoice  in  the  thought 
that  comes  to  me  that  I  had  a  part  in  preserving 
them  for  their  country's  defense. 

As  a  fitting  sequel  to  this  incident  I  must  relate 
the  substance  of  a  conversation  had  with  oi.e  of  the 
principals  in  this  affair,  Admiral  Porter,  several  years 
ago,  as  an  exemplification  of  the  feelings  that  actu- 
ated the  naval  officers  in  those  days  in  their  inter- 
course with  each  other. 

He  told  me  that  upon  the  death  of  Admiral 
Farragut,  he,  Porter,  having  been  promoted  to  suc- 
ceed him,  a  vacancy  was  thus  made  in  the  grade  of 


124       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Vice-Ad miral ;  and,  of  course,  a  selection  to  fill  that 
vacancy  had  to  be  made  by  President  Grant  from 
the  rear-admirals  upon  the  active  list. 

Amongst  the  most  distinguished  were  two  declared 
to  be  about  equal  in  merit.  Both  had  been  equally 
worthy  of  promotion,  and  had  received  the  thanks  of 
Congress  upon  nomination  by  the  President.  The 
only  question  was  "which  of  the  two  to  choose?" 

One  of  these  two  was  Rear-Admiral  John  Rodgers 
and  the  other  was  one  of  the  principals  in  the 
affair  above  narrated,  Stephen  C.  Rowan  ;  the  other 
principal,  Admiral  Porter,  was  present  when  the 
difficulty  of  selection  for  the  vacancy  referred  to 
was  the  subject  of  conversation  between  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  and  his  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  and  the  President,  turning  to  him,  desired  an 
expression  of  his  opinion. 

In  response  to  the  request  he  placed  his  finger 
upon  one  of  the  names  saying,  "  Where  both  are  so 
equally  worthy  of  preferment,  it  is  difficult,  Mr. 
President,  to  determine,  but  this  officer  and  I,  when 
we  were  young  officers,  had  a  most  serious  difficulty, 
and  if  the  other  officer  should  be  selected,  it  might 
be  said,  by  those  of  my  brother-officers  who  are 
cognizant  of  that  affair,  that  I  had  used  my  influence 
in  his  favor  from  ill-feeling  towards  the  one  who  is 
the  senior,  and  this  I  would  not  have  them  think  me 
capable  of  doing  !  " 

The  consequence  was  that  Rowan  was  selected  and 
promoted,  and  this  illustrates  the  magnanimous  and 
chivalric  spirit  pervading  the  old  navy  quite  in  con- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       125 

trast  with  the  "  spirit "  evinced  by  some  of  the 
younger  navy  of  the  present  day,  one  of  whom,  in  the 
scramble  for  promotion  following  the  war,  accepted 
preferment  far  beyond  his  merit  over  the  head  of  an- 
other who  rendered  life  and  death  service  to  him  as 
he  lay  wounded  on  the  battle-field — an  incident  that 
has  found  its  place  in  the  public  records. 

On  the  I /th  of  March,  1840,  I  was  nominated  for 
promotion  to  the  grade  of  lieutenant  to  fill  a  va- 
cancy and  was  in  due  time  confirmed  by  the  Senate 
and  commissioned  by  the  President,  when  with  a 
light  heart  I  commenced  my  preparation  for  the 
summer's  work  in  the  field,  having  been  assigned 
to  the  interior  work  between  Shrewsbury  and  New 
Brunswick,  in  the  state  of  New  Jersey,  as  the  neces- 
sary triangulation  point  was  not  ready  for  the  shore 
line  survey. 

In  May  we  were  off  to  our  tented  field  again,  on 
work,  however,  less  interesting  than  that  of  the  sea- 
coast.  Upon  this  latter,  I  felt  more  at  home,  nearer 
to  my  professional  element,  and  I  always  went  to 
my  work  there  with  more  zest  and,  consequently, 
with  less  fatigue.  The  vessels  at  sea,  passing  up 
and  down  the  coast,  served  as  a  reminder  that  I 
must  not  be  too  entirely  absorbed  in  my  temporary 
occupation. 

And,  now  that  I  had  received  my  promotion,  this 
work  in  the  interior,  from  its  isolation  from  every- 
thing referring  to  the  sea,  kept  before  me  the  neces- 
sity of  an  early  cruise  at  sea,  and,  therefore,  shore 
work  must  be  replaced  by  employment  more  con- 


126       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

genial  to  my  profession,  if  not  more  closely  allied 
to  the  sea. 

Our  work  was  located  in  a  more  fertile  region, 
studded  with  thrifty  farms  and  more  accessible  to 
civilization  than  was  the  seacoast  where  we  had  be- 
fore been  engaged  surveying.  Yet  the  days  did  not 
slip  by  so  quickly,  and  it  seemed  a  long  season  ere 
we  reached  our  last  camp  at  "  Old  Bridge,"  near 
Spotswood,  on  the  Camden  and  Amboy  Railroad, 
equi-distant  from  my  last  camp  and  Brunswick,  the 
end  of  rny  work  in  this  region. 

A  pleasing  incident  was  experienced  at  this  camp, 
showing  rude  politeness  not  usual  among  fishermen 
along  the  coast  ;  and  it  was  particularly  gratifying 
to  us,  as  simple  as  it  was,  proving  how  often  a  warm 
heart  exists  under  a  rough  exterior. 

Our  tents  were  pitched  in  the  rear  of  the  country 
tavern,  near  the  road  leading  eastward  into  the 
woods,  whilst  enjoying  our  otium  cum  dignitate  after 
my  return  from  a  day's  field  work.  Mrs.  Sands 
with  her  guitar  was  singing  over  some  of  her  bal- 
lads— as  was  usually  our  post-prandial  pastime — 
when  a  hand  was  slipped  in  between  the  curtains  of 
our  tent  door  and  a  brace  of  pheasants  was  dropped 
on  the  floor,  and  a  "  thank  you  "  uttered,  just  as  she 
closed  the  sweet  Scotch  song  "  Jock  o'  Hazeldean." 
The  present  was  from  the  keeper  of  the  tavern,  who 
was  just  returning  with  his  game-bag  comfortably 
filled.  Passing  by  the  camp,  he  had  been  attrac- 
ted by  the  music  and,  lingering  until  two  or  three 
songs  were  finished,  he  sought  to  testify  his  appre- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        127 

ciation  by  a  brace  of  the  first  birds  of  the  season, 
hurrying  away  before  I  could  get  outside  of  the 
tent  to  express  my  thanks.  His  act,  however,  met 
its  acknowledgment  in  the  employment  of  his  eldest 
son  among  the  men  of  my  party. 

We  were  detained  a  little  later  in  this  season 
than  was  usual  to  make  a  finish  of  the  part  assigned 
to  me,  and  resort  had  to  be  made  to  our  little  sheet- 
iron  stove  to  keep  us  comfortable  at  night.  It  was 
the  middle  of  November  before  we  struck  our  tents, 
paid  off  the  party,  and  returned  to  winter-quarters 
and  office-work. 

There  was  not  much  office-work  for  the  past 
season  in  draughting  ;  as  the  scale  of  our  maps  for  the 
interior  was  only  3-(J-,-Jinr,  one-half  that  of  the  coast 
maps,  which  are  T0.)^inr,  and  involved  only  one-half 
of  the  amount  of  inking  in  the  drawing. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

1841. 

CARLISLE  B.  PATTERSON  JOINS  MY  PARTY— IS 
PROMOTED  AND  WETS  HIS  COMMISSION  WITH 
DISASTROUS  RESULTS  TO  HIS  POCKET — OUR  MON- 
STER OYSTER  A  BREAKFAST  FOR  THREE — JEFF. 
PAGE  JOINS  MY  MESS  FOR  PART  OF  SEASON — 
PREPARATIONS  FOR  SEA  CRUISE. 

WITH  the  month  of  January  came  thoughts  of 
the  next  campaign,  and  early  in  the  spring  I  was 
assigned  to  the  continuation  of  the  seacoast  work ; 
as  the  triangulation  was  now  ready,  and  we  could 
proceed  without  further  interruption,  commencing 
where  we  had  left  off  at  Leed's  Point,  south  shore 
of  Little  Egg  Harbor. 

In  this  season's  work  I  was  joined  by  passed  mid- 
shipman Carlisle  Patterson  (afterward  superintend- 
ent of  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey)  as  my  assistant.  He 
had  been  before  on  hydrographic  work,  but,  like 
many  other  ambitious  officers,  was  transferred  to 
topography  with  a  view  to  advancement. 

He  was  a  very  cultivated  gentleman,  and  had  taken 
a  furlough  after  passing  his  examination  for  pro- 
128 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        I2Q 

motion,  and  had  gone  through  a  thorough  course  at 
the  Transylvania  University,  Frankfort,  Kentucky. 
He  was,  moreover,  an  expert  draughtsman  (I  have 
still  in  my  possession  a  specimen  of  his  work  in  a 
copy  of  Retsch's  illustration  of  Shakspere). 

I  was  delighted  at  having  his  companionship,  and 
a  tent  was  assigned  him  adjoining  my  mess  tent, 
and  he,  with  Mrs.  Sands  and  myself,  made  a  pleasant 
trio  at  table. 

He  had  not  quite  counted  the  cost  of  a  summer 
on  the  seacoast  marshes  of  New  Jersey,  and  was 
greatly  annoyed  at  the  onslaught  of  mosquitoes 
whenever  we  were  at  work  on  the  marshes  and  the 
thoroughfares  between  the  beach  and  the  fast  land. 

Mrs.  Sands  made  him  a  veil  to  envelop  his  face 
and  throat  whilst  we  were  at  work  in  such  localities, 
and  with  this  and  thick  gloves  he  managed  to  pro- 
tect himself  from  their  venomous  attacks  and  was 
able  to  keep  at  his  work  until  the  close  of  the  season 
of  1841. 

During  the  season  I  had  occasion  to  send  him  to 
Philadelphia  to  get  a  treasury  draft  cashed,  and 
whilst  there,  hearing  of  his  promotion  to  the  rank  of 
lieutenant,  he  deposited  his  valise  with  the  money 
in  it  at  the  stage  office,  intending  to  start  at  daylight 
across  Jersey  for  the  camp  in  the  early  stage-coach. 
Then  returning  to  his  friends  in  the  city  he  made 
a  night  of  it,  "  wetting  his  commission  "  at  a  supper- 
party. 

He  was  on   time   at  the   stage  office,  but  lo  and 
behold  !  his  valise  was  not  there.     The  porter  had 
9 

r 


130       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

returned  and  taken  it  from  the  office,  saying  that 
the  gentleman  had  changed  his  mind. 

This  was  a  blow  to  him  !  and  considerably 
dampened  his  spirits.  He  remained  the  day  there, 
to  endeavor  to  follow  up  the  thief,  but  obtained  no 
other  clue  to  the  robbery  than  that  of  recovering  the 
valise  minus  the  money,  which,  being  in  gold  and 
silver,  could  not  be  identified. 

The  loss  embarrassed  me  somewhat,  also,  as  I 
had  to  use  my  own  funds  to  pay  the  expenses  of  the 
party.  He  was  not  long  in  replacing  the  govern- 
ment money,  appropriating  for  that  purpose  the 
difference  of  pay  between  that  of  passed  midship- 
man and  that  of  lieutenant,  being  thus  deprived  of 
one  of  the  benefits  of  his  promotion  for  a  time. 

Whilst  at  that  camp  a  huge  oyster  was  brought 
to  me  by  one  of  my  men.  The  shell  was  twelve 
inches  long  and  six  inches  wide.  The  oyster  within 
was  eight  inches  in  length  and  two  inches  thick.  I 
had  it  served  on  the  half-shell,  and  we  three,  Mrs. 
Sands,  Patterson  and  I,  breakfasted  on  this  one 
oyster  !  The  monster  shell  I  endeavored  to  pre- 
serve, but  it  was  accidentally  lost.  I  desired  to  keep 
it  as  a  sample  of  New  Jersey  production.  It  must 
have  been  the  great  patriarch  of  the  shell-fish  on 
this  coast,  the  wrinkles  of  the  shell  being  filled  with 
hundreds  of  its  progeny. 

About  this  time  my  friend,  Lieutenant  T.  J.  Page, 
with  his  secondary  triangulation  party,  having 
work  near  us,  accepted  my  invitation,  and  with  his 
wife  joined  our  mess.  They  took  their  lodging  in 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        131 

the  tavern  upon  the  grounds  of  which  we  were  en- 
camped, we  not  having  tents  to  spare  for  them. 

This  accession  made  our  encampment  very  agree- 
able, and  it  continued  so  until  near  the  end  of  the 
season,  when  they  left.  I  took  advantage  of  their 
departure  to  send  my  family  to  Philadelphia  with 
them  in  their  carriage,  my  little  daughter  Marion 
being  quite  ill  and  the  doctor  having  recommended 
immediate  change  even  to  the  hot  city.  I  accom- 
panied them  as  far  as  Bridgeton,  returning  to  camp 
to  my  work. 

Mr.  Hassler,  the  superintendent,  also  visited  my 
camp  in  his  tour  of  inspection,  exciting  quite  a  com- 
motion in  the  neighborhood  with  his  "  quaint  and 
curious  "  field-carriage,  driven  four-in-hand. 

In  November,  finding  myself  with  a  good  supply  of 
summer  results  and  the  program  of  work  having  been 
carried  out  in  accordance  with  my  instructions,  we 
were  ready  for  our  winter  quarters  and  office-work 
for  the  season  in  Washington  ;  so  we  struck  camp, 
leaving  the  work  remaining  to  be  done  in  this  lo- 
cality, to  be  taken  up  next  season. 

Whilst  in  Washington  I  received  a  gift  from  my 
men  who  sent  me  by  express  a  box  of  splendid  sea- 
fowl — wild-geese,  brant  and  ducks  of  their  own 
shooting  in  their  winter  hunting  on  the  Jersey  coast 
— a  touching  and  welcome  present  for  the  winter 
season. 

There  was  a  general  sentiment  amongst  us  who 
had  been  recently  promoted,  that,  notwithstanding 
the  attractiveness  of  the  work  upon  which  we  were 


132        FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

engaged,  it  was  time  for  us  to  prepare  for  sea,  un- 
less we  determined  to  change  our  profession  ;  and 
now,  whilst  in  winter  quarters,  we  had  opportunity 
to  look  about  us  for  agreeable  stations  and  pleasant 
messmates  for  a  cruise. 

It  is  said  that  a  cruise  in  Washington  is  worth 
two  at  sea,  and  some  of  us  determined  to  put  it  in 
practice.  Inquiries  were  made,  of  course,  at  the 
department  amongst  our  friends  there,  and  we 
learned  that  there  was  a  probability  of  vessels  be- 
ing fitted  out  in  the  spring  or  summer  for  the 
Mediterranean. 

This  was  too  good  a  chance  to  be  lost  by  inac- 
tivity, and  Page  and  I  agreed  to  be  messmates  in 
one  of  those  ships,  and  prepared  to  lay  out  our 
anchors  to  windward  to  warp  in  at  the  appropriate 
time  when  rumors  became  probable  events.  Each 
gave  the  other  a  proper  lookout  so  that  the  oppor- 
tunity should  not  slip  by,  and  that  we  might  prevent 
anyone  forestalling  us. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

ORDERED  TO  THE  SHIP  OF  THE  LINE  "  COLUMBUS" 
—SAIL  FOR  THE  MEDITERRANEAN — GIBRALTAR 
—OFF  FOR  PORT  MAHON — GENOA  LA  SUPERBA— 
VISIT  FROM  THE  DOWAGER  QUEEN  OF  PRUSSIA. 

HAVING  made  all  my  arrangements  for  leaving 
home  when  orders  came,  I  agreed  with  my  friend, 
Lieutenant  Jeff.  Page,  to  apply  for  duty  on  the  line- 
of-battle  ship  "  Columbus."  We  did  so  at  once,  and 
succeeded  in  obtaining  a  promise  that  we  should  be 
attached  to  her,  our  orders  to  be  dated  just  prior  to 
her  sailing,  in  order  to  permit  us  in  the  intervening 
time  to  bring  forward  as  far  as  possible  the  coast 
survey  work  which  had  been  assigned  to  us. 

So  we  pursued  our  preparations  for  field-work,  and 
in  May  I  was  in  my  camp,  with  Mr.  George  D.  Wise 
as  assistant  with  the  chance  of  succession  as  head  of 
of  the  party — our  headquarters  being  Cape  May 
court-house. 

In  July  I  had  my  work  sufficiently  advanced  to 
enable  me  to  leave  Mr.  Wise  in  charge  of  the  party 
to  finish  the  work  up  to  Cape  May,  which  would 
complete  the  survey  of  the  Atlantic  coast  from 
Long  Branch  to  the  Cape  by  my  topographical 
party. 

133 


134       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

On  the  of  i8th  August,  1842,  Page  and  I  reported 
for  duty  on  the  "  Columbus  "  at  Boston,  in  obedience 
to  our  orders  just  then  received,  and  found  that  we 
were  to  have  a  charming  set  of  messmates  :  there 
were  Lieutenants  James  Watson,  Gustavus  H.  Scott, 
C.  F.  M.  Spottswood,  H.  N.  Harrison,  and  Augustus 
H.  Kilty  ;  Sailing  Masters  Lafayette  Maynard  (who 
afterwards  married  the  daughter  of  General  Duff 
Green  of  Georgia),  and  a  fine  fellow,  Cadwallader,  of 
Philadelphia  ;  Purser,  I.  N.  Todd,  Surgeon  Brooke, 
Chaplain  E.  Clark,  Lieutenant  L.  West,  U.  S. 
Marines.  There  were  also  twenty-five  midshipmen. 

The  Captain,  W.  C.  Spencer,  expressed  his  surprise 
at  the  late  day  of  our  reporting  for  duty,  but  we  had 
only  to  refer  to  the  date  of  our  orders  and  the  date 
of  our  reporting  to  silence  any  complaint  of  delay  in 
executing  them.  We  entered  at  once  on  duty. 

We  had  learned  in  advance  something  as  to  our 
prospective  cruise,  and  that  after  twelve  or  four- 
teen months  in  the  Mediterranean  we  would  prob- 
ably be  sent  over  to  the  Brazils  to  close  our  cruise. 

Our  mess  was  most  agreeable.  Page  was  made 
caterer,  which  assured  us  the  satisfactory  manage- 
ment of  that  department.  Kilty  was  wont  to 
enliven  our  evenings  with  his  guitar,  which  he  played 
most  delightfully.  It  was  arranged  that  he  should 
have  control  of  the  band. 

On  the  29th  of  August  anchor  was  weighed,  and 
we  were  soon  out  on  the  Atlantic,  on  our  course  for 
Madeira  en  route  to  the  Mediterranean. 

Everything  went  smoothly  and  without  much  of 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        135 

interest  until  about  the  loth  September,  when  we 
experienced  a  "  smoky  sou'wester,"  which  soon  had 
the  ship  under  three-reefed  topsails,  bowling  along 
at  ten  knots  an  hour,  which,  for  so  large  a  vessel,  was 
very  fast  sailing. 

During  the  three  days  of  this  gale  the  old  "  Colum- 
bus," proved  herself  as  steady  as  a  church,  so  that 
below  decks  there  was  so  little  movement  that  the 
gale  gave  us  no  inconvenience  whatever.  I  well  re- 
member one  Sunday  during  that  storm,  when  I  sat 
at  my  desk  in  my  stateroom  writing  to  my  wife,  it 
being  my  custom  to  so  utilize  a  good  deal  of  my 
spare  hours  when  off  duty,  that  I  might  always  be 
prepared  with  a  budget  to  send  to  her  by  the  first 
homeward-bound  vessel  we  might  meet. 

The  gale  was  then  blowing  too  hard  to  permit  of 
rigging  up  a  pulpit  on  the  spar  deck,  so  we  had  no 
"  divine  service,"  as  the  chaplain  would  have  been 
ducked  with  the  heavy  spray  continually  sweeping 
over  the  sides.  In  the  wardroom  "country"  some 
of  the  officers  sat  round  the  mess-table  reading, 
writing  or  playing  chess — to  kill  time.  On  deck 
others  were  making  or  taking  in  sail  according  as 
the  weather  permitted  or  required.  The  midship- 
men were  skylarking  in  every  direction,  whilst  the 
men  who  were  not  on  watch  were  employed  mend- 
ing their  clothes,  although  it  was  Sunday. 

I  had  the  morning  watch  that  day  from  4  to  8 
A.  M.  The  ship  was  under  snug  sail  because  of  the 
gale,  so  I  had  little  else  to  do,  but  to  walk  the 
poop-deck  with  speaking  trumpet  under  my  arm 


136        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

and  see  that  the  decks  were  cleared  up  and  put  in 
order  for  the  day. 

In  fair  weather  that  was  the  busiest  watch  we 
had,  for  it  was  the  duty  of  officer  of  the  deck  to  see 
all  the  decks  cleaned  ;  the  spar  deck,  the  main  gun- 
deck,  lower  gun-deck  and  orlop  deck  had  all  to  be 
made  as  white  as  snow ;  everything  brass  and  iron 
about  the  ship  had  to  be  polished  like  a  mirror  ; 
sail  was  to  be  put  on  the  ship  and  everything  put 
in  perfect  order  to  be  delivered  over  to  the  officer 
of  the  next  watch,  to  be  preserved  by  him  in  this 
condition,  weather  permitting,  until  the  night  came 
on  again.  The  other  watches  had  but  little  else 
to  do  except  to  make  and  take  in  sail. 

Between  whiles,  however,  came  the  exercising  of 
the  ship's  crew  at  great  guns  and  small-arms,  and 
the  inspection  of  their  clothes  to  see  that  they  were 
in  order,  and  that  they  had  on  hand  the  quantity 
required  by  the  regulations. 

Each  lieutenant  had  the  command  of  ten  guns 
(32-pounders)  and  seventy  men  to  work  them.  This 
division,  as  it  was  called,  must  be  regularly  exercised 
at  its  quarters  and  practised  in  the  use  of  the  guns. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  cruise  we  were  in  four 
watches;  consequently  every  fourth  night  we  had 
an  all-night  "  sleep  in,"  and  every  other  night  we 
kept  a  four  hours'  watch.  Being  afterwards  put  into 
eight  watches,  we  enjoyed  five  nights'  solid  sleep 
out  of  eight,  which  gave  us  so  much  more  leisure 
time. 

On  the  morning  of  the  I5th  of  September,  during 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       137 

my  watch,  the  lookout  at  the  masthead  sighted 
land,  and  soon  we  had  the  lofty  mountain-peaks  of 
the  Azores  in  plain  sight. 

As  our  orders  did  not  permit  of  our  stopping  at 
Fayal  we  passed  those  islands  by,  reaching  Madeira 
on  the  23d  of  September;  but  the  light  breezes  kept 
us  a  long  time  to  leeward  of  Funchal,  just  near 
enough  to  permit  of  our  seeing  the  houses  and  the 
vine-clad  knolls  with  the  spyglass.  There  was  the 
town  of  Funchal,  with  the  convent  of  Santa  Clara 
perched  upon  a  hill  far  above  the  town,  with  its  tur- 
rets overlooking  the  harbor  and  the  ocean  far  to  the 
southward. 

We  had  hoped  to  land  here,  but  were  doomed  to 
disappointment,  for  the  breezes  died  away  and 
threatened  to  becalm  us  ;  so  Captain  Spencer  made 
up  his  mind  to  lose  no  time  in  reaching  his  ulti- 
mate destination,  and  he  kept  the  ship  away  for 
Gibraltar,  having  had  nothing  more  than  a  passing 
glimpse  of  the  town  and  the  villages  scattered  along 
the  south  shore  of  the  island. 

Late  in  the  evening  of  September  3Oth  we  reached 
our  anchorage  in  the  bay  of  Gibraltar,  where  our 
consul  informed  us  of  the  death  of  Captain  Ralph 
Voorhees,  of  the  sloop-of-war  "  Preble,"  at  Smyrna 
of  the  fever. 

We  heard  that  the  difficulties  with  the  Emperor  of 
Morocco,  which  had  been  thought  to  be  settled,  at 
the  time  of  Commodore  Morgan's  sailing,  on  the  6th 
of  September,  for  Port  Mahon,  still  promised  trouble. 

The  Emperor  had   refused  to   ratify  the  arrange- 


138        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

ment  made  with  the  Bashaw  of  Tangiers,  which  was 
that  he  should  salute  our  flag  when  it  was  hoisted  by 
our  acting  consul  there.  It  was,  therefore,  expected 
that  Commodore  Morgan,  on  learning  of  this,  would 
bring  together  the  whole  fleet  and  sail  for  Tangiers 
to  compel  reparation,  so  that  in  the  current  rumors 
we  had  plenty  to  interest  us,  and  exciting  times  in 
anticipation. 

Our  stay  at  Gibraltar  was  but  a  brief  one,  still  I 
managed  to  get  ashore  for  a  tour  of  inspection,  being 
hurried  off  with  a  jovial  party  of  my  messmates  one 
evening,  and  I  was  amply  repaid  for  the  trip.  It  was 
a  novel  sight  to  our  eyes  that  was  presented  on  the 
streets  in  the  variety  of  costumes  one  met  with  on 
every  side — Moors  and  Moorish  Jews,  with  their  rich 
dresses  of  silk,  and  their  turbans ;  Arabs  with  their 
coarse  camel's-hair  dress,  called  "  haik  " — a  striped 
woolen  shirt  or  blouse,  with  a  hood  ;  and  English  in 
civilian's  dress,  except  those  in  service,  who  were  in 
great  numbers,  the  officers  and  soldiers  being  in  their 
gay  uniforms,  with  red  coats  and  blue  and  the  quaint 
dress  of  the  Highlanders,  in  their  kilts  and  tartan 
plaids,  with  bare  legs. 

There  were  two  brass  bands,  one  from  the  High- 
land Regiment,  playing  alternate  pieces  on  the  Ala- 
meda,  and  the  music  was  most  inspiring. 

The  town  and  the  whole  rock  of  Gibraltar  were  one 
vast  fortification  perfectly  impregnable,  and  yet  every 
day  saw  work  going  on  upon  some  new  battery. 

The  city,  being  under  martial  law,  was  full  of  sol- 
diers, so  that  we  could  not  walk  ten  steps  without  be- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        139 

ing  compelled  to  return  the  salute  of  passing  soldiers 
or  of  sentinels  on  their  posts.  We  were  obliged  to 
wear  our  undress  uniforms  always  when  on  shore, 
and  it  finally  became  a  nuisance  to  move  about,  so 
that  we  entered  a  hotel  and  taking  seats  upon  a  bal- 
cony found  pleasure  in  looking  out  on  the  promena- 
ders. 

The  English  ladies  made  us  think  of  home,  their 
dresses  being  the  same  in  style  as  those  worn  in  the 
States  :  the  Spanish  ladies  wore  the  graceful  man- 
tilla of  black  lace  falling  from  the  back  of  the  head, 
over  the  shoulders  to  the  waist ;  their  heads  had  no 
other  covering,  and  their  dark  hair  was  smooth  and 
shining.  There  were  numbers  of  beautiful  ladies 
promenading,  and  we  of  course  enjoyed  looking  on 
at  the  passing  crowds  of  pedestrians. 

On  the  4th  of  October  we  sailed  from  Gibraltar 
and  entered  the  beautiful  Mediterranean.  Spain 
was  on  our  left,  Africa  on  our  right,  the  straits  there 
being  about  thirteen  miles  wide;  and  as  we  headed 
eastward  we  had  in  sight,  Gibraltar  on  the  north, 
with  Algesiras  and  St.  Roque  on  the  shores  of  its 
bay,  and  farther  to  the  eastward  the  province  of 
Grenada  in  Spain.  To  the  westward  at  the  entrance 
of  the  straits  was  Tangiers  in  Morocco,  opposite  to 
which  is  the  town  of  Tarifa  from  which  port  Colum- 
bus sailed  to  discover  the  new  world.  Nearer  to  us 
was  Ceuta  in  Africa,  the  Botany  Bay  of  Spain,  filled 
with  convicts,  whilst  before  us  was  the  classic  Medi- 
terranean. 

We  were  bound  to  Port  Mahon,  in  search  of  our 


140       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Commodore,  for  whom  we  had  despatches  in  rela- 
tion to  the  affair  with  the  Emperor  of  Morocco,  and 
it  was  likely  he  would  return  with  us  to  settle  the  diffi- 
culties there. 

As  we  sailed  along  the  coast  of  Grenada  and 
Murcia,  the  sea  was  as  smooth  as  a  mill-pond,  light 
breezes  gently  wafting  us  along  and  the  temperature 
being  most  delightful.  There  were  several  sails  in 
sight,  among  them  a  smuggler  with  a  lateen  rigged 
boat  pulling  twenty  oars,  which  came  under  our  lee 
for  protection  from  a  '*  guarda-costa "  which  was 
crowding  on  all  sail  in  pursuit. 

On  the  Qth  of  October,  whilst  Page  wras  officer  of 
the  deck,  we  were  struck  by  a  heavy  squall,  the  ship 
heeling  over,  and  starting  the  captain  and  com- 
mander on  deck  without  waiting  to  be  called.  Page's 
prompt  orders  soon  had  the  ship  under  snug  sail  "  lay- 
ing to,"  and  when  I  relieved  him  on  watch  in  the 
pouring  rain  I  found  my  "  mackintosh  "  very  service- 
able. The  squall  passing  by,  the  wind  died  away  and 
left  the  old  "  Columbus"  wallowing  in  the  trough 
of  the  heavy  sea  which  had  arisen,  there  not  being 
breeze  enough  to  steady  her. 

As  a  general  rule,  we  had  perfect  Mediterranean 
weather  all  the  time. 

On  the  1 3th  of  October  a  sail  was  sighted,  which 
proved  to  be  the  frigate  "  Congress"  from  Port 
Mahon,  bound  to  Gibraltar  and  Tangiers  about  the 
difficulties  there,  but  she  returned  with  us  to  Mahon. 

We  soon  had  Jenkins  and  Porter  on  board  and  a 
most  joyous  meeting.  We  had  not  been  expected 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        141 

for  two  months,  and  our  coming  was  an  agreeable 
surprise  for  them,  as  letters  from  home  were  brought 
to  gladden  them. 

On  the  1 5th  of  the  month  we  were  at  anchor  in 
the  harbor  of  Mahon. 

The  Commodore  hoisted  his  flag  on  the  "  Co- 
lumbus," and  there  were  in  port  the  "  Congress,"  the 
sloop-of-war  "  Fairchild  "  and  a  French  corvette. 
The  town  is  one  of  the  neatest  and  cleanest  I  was 
ever  in. 

I  was  thoroughly  disgusted  at  shameful  scandals 
that  seemed  to  be  the  main  topics  of  conversation 
amongst  the  residents.  Every  one  was  at  the  mercy 
of  the  scandalmongers,  they  had  a  "  dab  at  all," 
the  innocent  as  well  as  the  guilty  ;  and,  no  matter 
how  severe  the  stones  might  be,  these  Mahonese  de- 
lighted to  set  them  afloat,  and  found  plenty  of  eager 
listeners. 

There  was  but  little  or  no  amusement  for  those  who 
were  not  of  dissipated  habits  ;  there  were  no  operas 
and  no  parties,  and  those  who  went  on  shore  had  to 
spend  their  time  in  drinking  or  gambling  houses, 
unless  they  could  be  satisfied  with  quiet  rambles 
through  the  town. 

Neither  Jenkins,  Page  nor  I  went  out  of  the  ship 
after  nine  o'clock  at  night,  not  being  inclined  to 
mingle  in  the  dissipations  of  the  town. 

On  the  27th  of  October  Page,  Jenkins  and  I 
mounted  donkeys  and  took  a  ride  into  the  country 
to  a  town  called  Aleor,  about  nine  miles  distant, 
and  returned  in  the  evening.  Our  road  lay  through  a 


142        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

beautiful  undulating  country,  fertile  and  well  culti- 
vated, and  on  each  side  we  passed  lovely  vineyards 
and  luxuriant  gardens. 

The  scenery  was  really  beautiful,  and  as  we  reached 
the  top  of  a  hill  rather  higher  than  the  rest  we  had  a 
lovely  view  of  the  Mediterranean  on  the  north  and 
south  side  of  the  island.  Behind  us  was  the  pretty 
harbor,  with  our  squadron  lying  quietly  at  anchor 
in  company  with  a  French  corvette  and  a  Nor- 
wegian brig-of-war.  The  town  of  Mahon  was  on 
the  bluff  on  its  south  side  about  six  miles  distant 
from  the  hill  on  which  we  halted  to  enjoy  the  view. 
Before  us  was  the  town  of  Aleor  with  its  whitewashed 
houses  and  red-tiled  roofs,  and  a  little  beyond,  tower- 
ing into  the  sky,  was  Mount  Torto  with  the  ruins  of 
a  monastery  upon  its  summits.  Around  us  lay  culti- 
vated fields,  with  which  the  island  was  adorned. 

As  we  rode  through  the  country  roads  on  our 
way,  we  meet  a  regiment  of  as  rascally  looking  sol- 
diers as  my  eyes  ever  met ;  real  cut-throat  villains, 
and  the  very  worst  soldiers,  so  the  natives  said,  in 
Espartero's  army. 

They  were  bound  to  Spain,  and  were  followed  by 
a  baggage-train  of  donkeys,  on  some  of  which  were 
mounted  the  officers'  wives;  there  being  but  one 
vehicle,  a  kind  of  a  covered  cart,  with  the  party,  con- 
taining the  family  of  a  superior  officer. 

These  trips  ashore  were  our  only  recreation.  Porter, 
Bache,  Page,  Jenkins  and  I  kept  pretty  much  to- 
gether, and  seldom  went  ashore  with  any  of  the 
other  officers. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        143 

The  news  afloat  about  this  time  was  that  we  were 
to  remain  in  this  port  the  whole  winter.  The  "  Con- 
gress "  was  to  go  to  Genoa  and  Toulon,  and  to  winter 
at  Genoa,  and  we  should  have  gone,  too,  if  our  Com- 
modore had  not  had  a  wife  whose  father  was  the 
Navy  Agent,  and  the  "  pickings  "  from  the  squadron 
were  considerable. 

We  had  hopes  of  wintering  at  Baiae,  a  small  harbor 
fourteen  miles  from  Naples,  where  we  should  have 
enjoyed  our  stay  more  because  of  its  surroundings. 

Notwithstanding  our  fears  as  to  our  wintering  in 
that  island  harbor,  the  I2th  of  November  saw  our 
ship  in  company  with  the  "  Congress  "  and  "  Preble  " 
breasting  the  billows  with  a  u  cracking  "  breeze  head- 
ing for  Spezzia.  The  night  before  we  had  been 
heading  for  Toulon,  joyous  at  the  prospect  of  anchor- 
ing off  that  city  the  next  day;  but  the  order  that 
morning  was  to  keep  away  for  Spezzia.  The  prevail- 
ing opinion  as  to  this  change  of  course  was  that  we 
had  sailed  north  simply  to  get  into  smooth  water  for 
the  sake  of  the  Commodore's  wife,  who  dreaded  the 
mal-de-mer,  her  health  being  such  as  to  make  an 
attack  of  that  disease  very  dangerous. 

As  we  sailed  out  of  Port  Mahon  we  saw  the  trans- 
port feluccas  moored  to  the  shore,  taking  on  board 
the  Spanish  soldiers  to  carry  them  to  Barcelona. 
They  had  been  told  that  we  were  only  waiting  until 
they  should  embark  that  we  might  catch  them 
outside  and  pour  into  them  a  broadside  in  retalia- 
tion for  the  assassination  of  poor  Patterson  who 
was  stabbed  by  a  native  when  returning  to  the  ship 


144       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

after  dark  one  evening,  and  they  were  actually  afraid 
that  such  was  our  intention. 

About  an  hour  before  we  sailed  we  had  a  visit  from 
the  family  of  a  Lieutenant  Arquimbeau  of  the  Eng- 
lish navy, — who  had  married  a  Mahon  lady, — consist- 
ing of  the  lieutenant,  his  wife  and  three  pretty  daugh- 
ters, all  beauties  of  the  Spanish  type,  the  mother 
being  as  young  looking  and  almost  as  beautiful 
as  her  daughters.  They  were  shown  into  my  "  snug- 
gery "  on  the  orlop  deck,  and  when  they  came  into  our 
messroom  I  was  introduced  to  them,  and  was  gratified 
at  their  expression  of  admiration  of  the  portrait  of  my 
wife ;  and  having  seen  the  miniature  of  Page's  wife 
they  said  they  could  understand  why  these  "  lover- 
husbands"  did  not  care  to  go  ashore  and  could  excuse 
it.  On  November  I3th  we  had  land  in  sight  on  both 
sides,  Corsica,  Napoleon's  native  isle,  on  the  south, 
and  France,  the  land  of  his  adoption,  on  the  north ; 
and  by  sunset  we  were  fairly  i.n  the  gulf  of  Genoa. 

In  my  morning  watch  I  had  my  first  glimpse  of 
Italian  scenery,  the  "  spurs  of  the  Alps  "  being  in 
sight.  It  was  beautiful,  and  the  pleasure  of  behold- 
ing such  scenery  was  heightened  by  the  mellowness 
of  the  atmosphere.  The  sea  was  comparatively 
smooth — a  gentle  breeze  waftingus  along  the  coast ; 
as  we  glided  on  our  course,  pretty  little  villages 
one  after  another,  met  the  eye ;  and,  before  my 
watch  was  over,  Genoa,  the  ancient  capital  of  the 
ancient  naval  republic  of  Genoa,  the  birthplace  of 
the  discoverer  of  our  own  native  land,  was  within  the 
field  of  my  telescope. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       145 

A  whim  of  the  old  Commodore  caused  the  helm 
to  be  put  to  starboard,  and  on  the  I5th  of  November 
we  ran  into  the  harbor  of  Genoa  to  our  intense  de- 
light. The  port-admiral  was  ordered  by  the  gov- 
ernor to  assign  us  the  best  moorings,  and  to  give  us 
every  facility  therein. 

The  name  of  our  ship,  "  Columbus,"  won  us  much 
favor  with  the  Italians,  who  took  it  as  a  compliment 
to  themselves  that  she  was  so  named  ;  and,  although 
they  were  subjects  of  the  King  of  Sardinia,  they 
still  possessed  much  of  that  republican  feeling 
which  they  once  were  celebrated  for,  and  they  made 
lions  of  us.  The  governor  gave  orders  that  the 
gates  of  the  city  were  to  be  thrown  open  to  us  when- 
ever we  appeared  in  our  uniforms,  and  we  were 
saluted  by  soldiers  at  every  corner,  and  greeted  with 
smiles  by  every  one. 

Every  hour  of  the  day  found  our  decks  full  of 
visitors  from  the  city,  who  received  every  attention 
from  our  officers.  The  governor's  lady  and  a  large 
party  visited  the  ship  with  many  ladies  and  gentle- 
men of  distinction,  and  on  the  iQth  November  the 
Queen  Dowager  of  Prussia  came  on  board  during 
my  watch  on  deck. 

We  manned  the  yards,  and   received  her  and  her 
suite,  consisting  of  three  ladies  and  several  officers, 
with  all  of  our  officers  in  full-dress  uniform,  and  on 
her  departure  fired  a  salute  of  twenty-one  guns. 
10 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

GENOA  LA  SUPERBA  !  SPLENDOR  OF  THE  CHURCHES 
— RUBENS  AND  HIS  WIFE — DUEL  BETWEEN  MID- 
SHIPMEN COOKE  AND  BIER — PADRE  CALLAGHAN 
THE  CARMELITE — THE  SWEET  SINGING  OF  CLARA 
NOVELLA,  THE  FAMOUS  PRIMA  DONNA  COMPELLED 
TO  SING  BY  THE  POLICE — OUR  GRAND  REGATTA 
AND  DELIGHTFUL  ENTERTAINMENT  ON  THE 
"  COLUMBUS  "—PAINTING  BY  RAPHAEL  AND 
GIULIO  ROMANO. 

AT  last  I  was  able  to  make  a  visit  to  the  shore 
and  did  enjoy  heartily  the  hours  I  spent  sight-seeing 
in  Genoa,  justly  called  "  La  superba."  My  eyes  had 
never  beheld  so  much  of  splendor.  The  churches 
are  magnificent,  hung  with  the  most  gorgeous  tap- 
estry, splendidly  illuminated,  filled  with  paintings 
by  the  old  artists  of  Italy,  and  with  ceilings  beauti- 
fully painted  in  fresco  with  Scriptural  illustrations. 
The  niches  in  these  churches  were  filled  with  the 
most  beautiful  bassi-relievi.  We  were  all  struck 
with  the  splendor  of  everything  around  us. 

One  day  whilst  Page  and  I  were  looking  up  articles 
for  our  mess,  we  chanced  to  drop  into  a  church, 
being  attracted  by  the  crowd  in  front  of  its  doors, 
146 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        147 

which  induced  us  to  enter,  and  we  found  ourselves 
in  the  midst  of  even  more  magnificence  and  splendor 
than  on  our  last  trip  ashore.  It  was  the  church  of 
the  "  Virgin  of  the  Vineyard,"  and  the  people  were 
offering  thanks  for  the  plentiful  yield  of  the  past 
season's  crop. 

It  would  be  useless  for  me  to  attempt  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  brilliancy  of  the  interior  of  this  church. 
It  was  modern,  and  its  frescoes  were  but  just  finished, 
but  they  were  beautiful  indeed. 

We  finished  the  day  at  the  opera-house  of  St. 
Carlos  Felice,  but  the  performance  was  by  a  third- 
rate  troupe,  and  we  found  no  enjoyment  in  it. 

We  were  admitted  to  the  interior  of  several  of  the 
palaces.  They  were  really  splendid.  The  Strada 
Balbi  is  a  street  of  palaces,  as  is  the  Strada  Nuvir, 
and  to  see  through  three  or  four  of  these  palaces  occu- 
pied us  a  whole  day.  They  were  filled  with  original 
paintings  by  the  most  celebrated  artists,  and  I  fairly 
reveled  in  the  enjoyment  I  found  amongst  those 
beautiful  works  of  Titian,  Domenichino,  Rubens, 
Guido,  Michael  Angelo,  Van  Dyck,  Paul  Veronese, 
Raphael,  Salvator  Rosa,  and  all  the  most  eminent 
artists  of  Europe. 

The  carving  and  gilding,  the  marble  and  the  fresco 
painting,  with  the  superb  tapestry,  in  which  scarlet 
and  gold  abound,  and  everything  in  the  most  gor- 
geous and  magnificent  style,  betokened  unbounded 
wealth  in  the  possessors. 

We  at  first  thought  it  strange  that  we  should  be 
admitted  so  freely  into  these  palaces,  but  we  learned 


148       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

that  the  nobility  were  proud  of  this  magnificence, 
and  were  flattered  by  the  curiosity  and  admiration 
of  strangers. 

We  learned,  early  in  December,  that  upon  the  ar- 
rival of  Commodore  Morris  our  ship  was  to  sail  for 
the  Brazils,  with  a  prospect  of  a  return  to  these 
waters,  for  the  affairs  in  Morocco  were  not  yet 
adjusted. 

Every  day  saw  an  increase  in  the  number  of  our 
visitors  from  shore,  and  all  hands  were  kept  busy 
showing  them  about,  and  entertaining  them. 

We  had  one  little  domestic  infelicity,  as  it  may  be 
called,  to  interrupt  all  the  cheerful  thoughts  that 
came  with  our  pleasant  surroundings,  in  the  shape  of 
a  duel  between  two  of  the  younger  officers,  who 
yielded  to  a  little  boiling  up  of  the  young  blood  in 
their  veins,  and  after  some  hot  words  exchanged  a 
challenge  to  fight.  They  were  midshipmen  Cooke 
of  Philadelphia  and  Bier  of  Baltimore.  They  went 
on  shore  early  in  the  morning  and  fought  outside  of 
the  city,  in  front  of  a  country  seat  beside  the  public 
road,  having  some  twenty  or  thirty  spectators  who 
possibly  found  enjoyment  in  being  lookers  on. 
Bier  fell  wounded  just  below  the  knee,  and  the  ball 
was  not  extracted.  He  could  not  be  brought  off  to 
the  ship  until  the  next  morning. 

One  morning  Page  and  I  strolled  to  the  top  of  one 
of  the  hills  above  the  city  and  visited  the  monastery 
of  Santa  Ana,  some  of  the  padres  of  which  had 
visited  the  ship,  and  one,  an  Irishman,  by  name 
Callaghan,  had  invited  me  to  visit  him.  They  are 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        149 

Carmelites,  and  lead  the  strictest  of  lives,  eating  no 
meat  at  all,  and  wearing  coarse  cloth  garments  and 
no  shirt  or  stockings  !  They  took  us  through  the 
whole  building  from  the  library  to  the  kitchen,  and 
after  going  the  rounds,  they  showed  us  into  Padre 
Callaghan's  cell  which  was  about  the  size  of  my 
stateroom,  and  gave  us  oranges  from  the  trees  in 
their  gardens,  cordial  of  their  own  making,  and  choco- 
late they  had  themselves  manufactured,  the  process 
of  making  which  they  also  explained  to  us. 

As  we  were  leaving,  one  of  them  presented  me  with 
a  valuable  work  on  Algebraic  Equations,  by  the 
Padre  Boldana,  who  is  said  to  be  the  greatest  mathe- 
matician in  the  world,  and  who  is  the  General  of  the 
order  of  Carmelites  in  Genoa. 

The  view  from  these  hills  back  of  the  city  was 
lovely.  Just  back  of  us  were  the  Alps,  covered  with 
snow.  The  sun  shining  brightly  down  added  to  the 
glory  of  the  scene.  Below  us  lay  Genoa  and  its 
pretty  little  harbor  filled  with  a  forest  of  masts, 
among  which  the  vessels  of  our  own  squadron,  with 
their  stripes  and  stars,  were  most  conspicuous,  and 
far  beyond,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  lay  the 
tideless  sea,  the  classic  Mediterranean,  whilst  all 
around  us  were  scattered  splendid  villas ;  here  and 
there  a  steepled  church,  and  just  above  us  frowned  an 
almost  impregnable  castle  upon  the  brow  of  the  hill. 

The  scene  was  beautiful  beyond  my  power  of  de- 
scription, and  we  threw  ourselves  down  upon  the 
grassy  slope  of  the  hill  to  enjoy  it  in  all  of  its  rich- 
ness. 


ISO       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

In  January,  1843,  Lieutenant  Frederick  Chatard 
joined  the  ship.  This  month  gave  us  several  terrific 
gales  from  the  southwest,  and  all  hands  were,  whilst 
they  lasted,  kept  at  work  on  the  ship's  fasts,  which 
now  and  then  would  part.  The  heavy  seas  breaking 
against  the  mole  would  sweep  over  us  in  torrents  ; 
our  topmasts  had  to  be  housed  and  all  of  our  fasts 
doubled,  but  we  rode  out  these  gales  in  safety.  In 
February  we  had  an  exceptional  treat  in  the  opera, 
and  I  was  delighted  with  the  evenings  I  spent 
listening  to  the  sweet  singing  of  Clara  Novella,  who, 
during  the  preceding  month,  had  been  delighting 
the  community  at  Rome. 

On  the  first  night  of  her  appearance  she  was  un- 
fortunately indisposed,  and  being  obliged,  by  the 
manager,  to  sing,  she  made  a  failure,  and  was  very 
ungallantly  hissed,  at  which  she  felt  insulted  and 
left  the  stage  ;  but  the  authorities  compelled  her 
to  appear  on  the  stage  again  and  to  make  an 
apology  to  the  audience,  which  she  did  to  this  effect, 
that  "she  was  indisposed  from  the  fatigue  of  travel- 
ing, and  to  proceed  with  the  scene  would  be  but  to 
insult  the  Genoese  public."  After  having  done  that 
two  gendarmes  were  put  in  attendance  upon  her,  or, 
as  we  would  say  on  board  ship,  she  was  put  "  in  the 
sentry's  charge." 

Her  subsequent  appearance   found    her   in  fine 
voice,  and  she  won  frequent  applause. 

A  number  of  changes  were  made  in  our  mess  this 
month,  Tilton  going  to  the  "  Congress,"  and  a  general 
change  of  captains  being  made,  and  I  became  anxious 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

lest  I  should  be  removed  from  the  "  Old  Columbus  " 
before  the  cruise  was  completed,  for  I  had  become 
much  attached  to  her  as  a  home  afloat. 

About  the  middle  of  March  we  of  the  wardroom 
invited  the  Governor  of  Genoa,  the  two  admirals 
and  their  families,  with  some  others  of  the  magnates 
of  the  land  and  their  families,  to  visit  the  ship  in 
order  to  witness  a  regatta  for  which  we  had  made 
arrangements,  and  we  extended  our  invitations  to 
the  Commodore  and  all  the  officers  of  our  own 
squadron. 

The  company  began  assembling  shortly  after 
noon  of  the  day  of  the  regatta,  and  when  the 
governor  arrived  we  sent  the  men  aloft  to  furl  sails  in 
his  honor,  and,  whilst  the  men  were  out  on  the  yards, 
fired  a  salute  of  twenty-one  guns,  the  guests  being 
all  assembled  on  our  poop-deck. 

The  salute  was  answered  from  the  arsenal  on 
shore.  I  never  saw  people  so  delighted.  Their  wide- 
opened  eyes  carried  the  expression  of  "  What's 
next !  "  The  drum  beat  "  to  quarters  "  whilst  the 
most  of  the  party  were  strolling  about  the  decks, 
and  the  running  of  the  men  and  officers  to  their 
stations  bewildered  the  ladies,  and  they  all  huddled 
together  on  one  side  of  the  deck,  where  we  asked 
them  to  remain  awhile  to  witness  the  exercise  of  the 
great  guns.  Then  came  the  loud  orders  of  the 
officers,  and  the  running  in  and  out  of  the  guns,  as 
the  men  went  through  their  exercise,  which  no 
doubt  was  as  another  Babel  to  our  visitors. 

The  rattle  was  sprung  for  "  boarders,"  and  the  cry 


±52        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

of  "Away  there!  all  boarders  and  pikemen  "  re- 
sounded along  the  deck  ;  swords  sprung  from  scab- 
bards, and  each  man  grabbed  his  pistol  and  rushed 
upon  deck  to  form  in  close  order  under  the  bulwarks, 
supported  in  their  rear  by  the  marines  and  pikemen 
in  double  line  along  the  deck.  Our  visitors  follow- 
ing as  fast  as  their  *'  land  legs  "  would  permit  them, 
and  crowding  to  the  forward  part  of  the  poop-deck 
to  witness  the  fight.  At  the  order  to  "  Board  !  "  five 
hundred  cutlasses  gleamed  above  our  bulwarks  in 
the  act  of  boarding  our  imaginary  enemy  ;  and  at 
the  order  4<  Stand  by  to  repel  boarders !  "  we  board- 
ers fell  back,  and  the  marines  fired  a  volley  and  ad- 
vanced with  the  pikemen  to  receive  the  enemy  who 
was  supposed  to  be  boarding  us. 

The  governor  expressed  his  pleasure  in  his  loud 
and  frequent  exclamations  of  "  Bene  !  bene  !  "  At 
the  sound  of  the  bugle  we  all  returned  to  our  guns 
and  went  on  with  the  fight  between  decks.  Soon 
the  retreat  was  sounded,  the  guns  were  secured,  and 
we  all  returned  to  the  side  of  the  ladies,  and  the  gal- 
lant ones  of  our  officers  told  them  how  much  more 
danger  there  was  in  their  bright  eyes  than  in  any 
naval  engagement, — how  much  more  serious  were  the 
wounds  of  the  heart  than  any  that  gun-shot  could 
inflict ! 

The  boats  of  the  squadron  were  then  called  away 
and  formed  in  line  ahead,  numbering  twenty-one  in 
all,  and  making  a  gay  scene  with  their  flags  fluttering 
to  the  breeze,  each  boat,  in  addition  to  our  stars  and 
stripes,  having  a  distinguishing  flag  which  floated 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        153 

from  a  staff  in  the  bow — "  red  "  for  the  "  Columbus," 
"blue"  for  the  "Congress,"  and  "white"  for  the 
"  Preble." 

The  marshal  of  the  day,  in  a  beautiful,  long  eight- 
oared  boat,  made  signal  that  all  was  ready.  A  gun 
was  fired  and  off  they  dashed,  their  oars  lashing  the 
water  into  a  foam.  It  was  really  a  beautiful  sight  to 
behold. 

The  ladies  cried  "Viva!"  "Bravi  !"  "Beauti- 
ful !  "  "  Magnifique  !  "  and  seemed  to  enjoy  the  scene 
as  much  as  we  could  who  had  the  favorite  boats  and 
bets  pending  to  excite  us.  They  reached  the  goal 
and  formed  again  into  line  ready  for  another  start. 
The  gun  again  sent  forth  the  signal,  and  again  the 
crews  sprang  to  their  oars,  whilst  we  from  the 
"  Columbus'  "  deck  watched  for  our  favorites  among 
the  leading  boats. 

The  waters  were  white  with  the  splashing  of  the 
many  oars,  and  the  boats  seemed  to  leap  almost  from 
the  water  as  they  neared  our  stern  where  all  of  our 
guests  were  assembled,  as  much  interested  in  the 
issue  as  we  were.  It  was  seen  that  the  leading 
boat  was  the  second  barge  of  the  "  Columbus,"  and 
the  bugle  sounded  her  "call,"  as  if  calling  her  own, 
when  the  men  responding  to  its  notes  redoubled 
their  efforts,  and,  passing  the  line,  tossed  oars,  amidst 
the  loud  applause  and  shouts  of  "  Bravi  !  "  "  Bravi !  " 
from  the  ladies.  Then  followed  another  red  flag,  the 
"  Columbus'  "  second  cutter,  next  a  white  flag,  the 
"  Treble's"  gig.  Then  followed  the  main  body,  our 
launches  bringing  up  the  rear  and  tossing  their  oars 


154       FROM    REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

as  they  passed  and  making  the  welkin  ring  with  their 
three  hearty  cheers  responsive  to  the  applause  of  the 
ladies.  The  bugler  answered  with  the  never-failing 
"  Yankee  Doodle/*  after  which  we  marched  the 
governor  and  the  ladies  with  our  other  guests  down 
below,  none  of  them  knowing  what  was  to  come  next, 
the  day  having  been  one  of  continual  surprises  to 
them,  and  they  quietly  followed  all  our  directions. 

The  wardroom  doors  were  thrown  open  and  an  ele- 
gant dejeuner  &  la  fourchette  spread  with  handsome 
decorations  upon  the  table,  greeted  their  eyes. 
"  Beautiful !' "  "  Magnifique  !  "  passed  from  mouth  to 
mouth,  and  the  praise  put  us  all  in  the  best  of  spirits, 
and  all  was  gay  and  joyous. 

There  was  just  room  for  all  the  ladies  to  be  seated 
around  the  table,  which  was  spread  to  its  full  length. 
The  remaining  guests  filled  the  wardroom  so  closely 
that  we  could  just  manage  to  wait  upon  them  and 
that  was  all,  more  having  come  than  were  expected, 
and  we  had  our  mess-room  filled  with  marquesses, 
countesses,  admirals,  generals,  and  almost  all  the 
titles  of  Italy. 

All,  however,  were  accommodated  and  helped  to 
the  repast.  Loud  popped  the  champagne,  and  merry 
rang  the  laughter  of  the  fair  ones.  Eyes  shone 
bright  and  tongues  rattled,  and  the  game  of  the 
knife  and  fork  was  soon  filling  the  measure  of  each 
one's  enjoyment. 

The  gouty  governor  and  his  two  as  gouty  admi- 
rals enjoyed  themselves  as  much  as  any.  It  was  a 
scene  joyous  and  exciting ;  wine  flowed  and  wit 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       1 55 

flashed.  The  most  of  the  ladies  could  speak  English 
fairly,  and  we  -were  at  no  loss  to  entertain  them. 
The  affair  was  impromptu,  and  they  enjoyed  it  the 
more  for  that  reason.  We  had  not  said  "  cham- 
pagne "  or  "  boned  turkey  "  to  them  once,  and  they 
had  little  expected  such  an  entertainment,  we  having 
kept  it  secret,  everyone  expecting  simply  to  witness 
a  regatta. 

But  we  were  not  yet  done  with  them.  We  ad- 
journed from  the  table  to  the  spar-deck,  where  our 
band  was  playing  waltzes,  and  one  couple  starting 
off  circling  around  the  deck  attracted  others  to  the 
graceful  dance,  and  soon  the  deck  was  filled  with 
waltzers,  where  we  kept  them  until  twilight,  when 
they  dispersed. 

The  Admiral,  Count  de  Very,  left  the  ship  under 
a  salute  of  seventeen  guns.  Every  countenance  ex- 
pressed' pleasure  and  delight  at  the  entertainment. 

On  the  27th  of  March  I  went  ashore  for  a  ramble 
among  the  churches.  The  first  one  I  visited  was 
that  of  San  Mateo,  one  of  the  seven  oldest  churches 
in  Genoa,  built  in  1278.  The  front  is  filled  with 
inscriptions,  one  of  which  tells  of  the  great  naval 
victory  of  Scargola,  in  1298 — when  the  Venetian 
fleet  was  defeated  by  the  Genoese  under  Lamba 
Doria,  under  the  patronage  of  which  family  the 
church  had  been  built.  There  were  some  fine 
pictures  in  it. 

Next  we  went  to  San  Stefanodella  Porta,  and  saw 
there  the  great  painting  of  the  martyrdom  of  St. 
Stephen,  the  joint  production  of  Raphael  and  Giulio 


156       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Romano.  It  is  called  by  competent  judges  the  great- 
est painting  in  the  world ;  some,  however,  make  an 
exception  of  two  paintings  in  Rome,  the"  Transfigura- 
tion "  and  the  "  Descent  from  the  Cross."  An  English- 
man offered  100,000  francs  for  it  in  1814.  We  spent 
some  time  contemplating  its  beauties.  St.  Stephen 
was  in  the  foreground,  with  upraised  eyes  and  arms 
folded  across  his  breast,  the  very  picture  of  faith. 
St.  Paul  was  on  his  right,  looking  on,  whilst  the  mul- 
titude were  in  the  rear,  stoning  the  martyr.  The 
heavens  opened  above  and  showed  the  Almighty  and 
His  "well-beloved  Son  "  on  His  right.  The  counte- 
nance of  the  Almighty  expressed  wisdom,  justice, 
and  dignity,  but  it  seemed  strange  that  a  painter 
should  attempt  to  depict  that  which  I  think  impos- 
sible to  imagine,  for  what  pencil  could  portray  His 
attributes ! 

We  visited  also  the  church  of  Jesus,  built  at  the 
expense  of  the  Palavicini  family.  It  is  connected 
by  an  arch  across  the  street  with  the  ducal  palace, 
over  which  the  Doges  used  to  pass  to  hear  mass, 
and  the  archway  is  still  used  by  the  Governor  for 
that  purpose. 

The  interior  of  the  church  is  filled  with  celebrated 
paintings,  the  ceiling  with  splendid  frescoes,  by  the 
Genoese  painter,  Carlone.  From  the  ceiling  to  the 
floor  all  is  resplendent  with  gold  and  colors. 

The  last  church  visited  was  that  of  Santa  Maria 
di  Carignano,  a  very  imposing  building  in  its  appear- 
ance, on  one  of  the  highest  points  in  the  city,  and 
somewhat  like  the  pictures  of  St.  Peter's  in  Rome. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        1 57 

We  crossed  a  bridge, — from  which  we  could  look  into 
the  seventh  story  of  the  houses  beneath  us, — thrown 
across  the  valley  to  make  more  easy  the  access  to 
the  church.  The  paintings  in  this  church  were  very 
fine,  but  were  not  well  cared  for. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

JOHN  HOWARD  PAYNE  AT  PORT  MAHON— COMMO- 
DORE MORRIS  RELIEVES  COMMODORE  MORGAN, 
WHO  IS  TO  SUCCEED  IN  THE  COMMAND  OF  THE 
BRAZIL  SQUADRON — FRENCH  CONSUL'S  BALL — 
ENTERTAINMENT  ON  THE  "  COLUMBUS  " — SQUAD- 
RON SAILS  FROM  PORT  MAHON — PART  COMPANY — 
AWAY  FOR  TOULON. 

ON  the  ist  of  April,  1843,  we  sailed  from  Genoa 
for  Port  Mahon,  where  we  were  soon  at  our  old 
anchorage. 

John  Howard  Payne,  the  author  of  "  Home,  Sweet 
Home,"  who  was  our  consul  at  Tunis,  came  over 
from  Marseilles,  on  the  sloop-of-war  "  Fairchild,"  on 
his  way  to  his  post  of  duty  ;  but  learning  that  the 
"  Columbus  "  was  to  sail  for  Gibraltar  and  afterwards 
to  Tunis,  he  concluded  to  go  with  us. 

On  the  I  Qth  of  April  the  line-of-battle  ship  "  Dela- 
ware "  was  signaled  off  the  harbor,  and  soon  entered, 
with  a  salute  from  our  vessel.  I  visited  my  friends 
on  the  old  "  Delaware,"  and  found  Gustavus  V.  Fox 
(who  afterwards  became  assistant-secretary  of  the 
navy,  in  1862)  and  Stephen  C.  Rowan  both  well. 

On  the  26th  of  April  Commodore  Morgan  turned 
'58 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        159 

over  the  squadron  to  Commodore  Morris,  and  our 
ship  was  made  the  flagship  of  the  Brazil  'squadron. 
There  were  efforts  to  effect  change  of  ships  by 
some  of  the  officers,  but  the  most  of  us,  after  com- 
paring the  comforts  of  this  ship  with  what  the 
"  Delaware  "  had  to  offer,  hoisted  Lawrence's  flag, 
with  its  motto,  "  Don't  give  up  the  ship  !  "  and  con- 
cluded to  remain  with  our  old  "  barkie,"  no  matter 
where  she  was  ordered. 

With  Commodore  Morgan  we  were  able  now  and 
then  to  find  out  his  intentions,  but  Commodore 
Morris  is  as  "  tight  as  wax,"  and  we  could  not  learn 
anything  about  our  movements  in  advance. 

On  the  first  of  May  the  Bay  of  Mahon  was  noisy 
with  the  discharge  of  cannon,  in  celebration  of  the 
birthday  of  Louis  Philippe,  king  of  France.  The 
little  French  corvette  was  dressed  off  in  its  flags, 
and  fired  a  salute,  morning,  noon  and  night,  and  at 
noon  every  ship  of  our  fleet  fired  a  salute  of  twenty- 
guns,  with  the  French  flag  at  the  fore. 

At  night  we  were  all  invited  to  a  soiree  at  the 
French  consul's,  and  at  8.30  Spotswood  and  I 
were  in  full  uniform  and  in  attendance  upon  the 
Arquimbeaus,  who  were  placed  under  my  charge 
for  the  evening  as  their  father  and  mother  would 
not  go  ;  so  we  entered  the  ballroom  of  the  consul 
with  two  of  the  prettiest  young  ladies  in  the  room 
on  our  arms.  They  called  me  papa  for  the  evening, 
and  after  a  waltz  and  contradanza  with  each,  I 
with  pencil  and  card  kept  a  record  of  their  engage- 
ments and  played  the  part  of  papa  with  becoming 


l6o   FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

dignity.  I  felt  all  the  importance  of  being  a  married 
man,  and  fully  appreciated  the  honor  bestowed  upon 
me  and  the  confidence  reposed  in  me  by  their 
parents.  The  girls  seemed  perfectly  satisfied,  and 
whenever  there  was  any  difficulty  in  regard  to  their 
engagements  would  refer  their  "  beaux "  to  their 
papa  for  proper  settlement  of  the  matter. 

The  dances  were  alternately  the  waltz,  the  con- 
tradanza  and  the  rigadoon  or  quadrille,  and  I 
admired  much  the  gracefulness  of  the  lovely  Spanish 
girls  as  they  glided  over  the  floor  to  the  inspiring 
music.  Commodore  Morris  attended  the  ball,  as  did 
our  Commodore  Morgan,  who  was  the  observed  of 
all  observers.  Commodore  Morris  did  not  earn  the 
good-will  of  the  squadron  he  commanded,  conceiv- 
ing himself  to  be  the  great  reformer  and  retrencher. 
The  neatness  and  cleanliness  of  the  "  Columbus" 
necessitated  considerable  expenditure  of  paint  to 
furbish  up  his  "  Delaware"  when  the  two  vessels 
were  in  contrast  to  each  other,  the  latter  not  being 
in  the  best  condition  by  any  means. 

Amongst  the  first  orders  given  by  Commodore 
Morris  when  he  let  go  his  anchor  was  "  all  officers 
will  cut  off  their  whiskers  !  " 

We  of  the  "  Columbus  "  retained  ours,  not  con- 
sidering ourselves  under  his  orders,  but  as  being 
now  a  part  of  the  Brazil  squadron. 

Shortly  before  we  sailed  the  wardroom  officers 
gave  a  ball  in  honor  of  Lieutenant  G.  H.  Scott  and 
his  bride  of  a  week's  standing,  and  at  3  o'clock  P.  M. 
on  May  4th  we  began  our  decorations  for  the  im- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       l6l 

promptu  entertainment,  and  when  lit  up  at  dark  our 
deck  was  really  brilliant. 

The  awnings  had  been  spread  and  lined  with 
national  flags  and  the  sides  closed  in  with  canvas 
curtains,  festooned  with  red,  white  and  blue  bunting. 
In  the  middle,  above  a  stack  of  bright  muskets  which 
surrounded  the  capstan,  was  erected  a  large  chan- 
delier or  pyramid  of  bayonets  stuck  with  candles. 
Around  the  hatchway  were  rows  of  muskets  with 
fixed  bayonets  as  reflectors  for  the  candles  which 
were  stuck  in  their  muzzles.  Another  hatchway 
was  covered  over  with  evergreens  hiding  a  cage  with 
canary  birds  which  warbled  whenever  the  band 
ceased  playing. 

This  was  called  the  "  bower  of  bliss,"  and  was 
erected  for  the  bride  especially,  and  over  its  front 
was  placed  "a  bunch  of  wheat  "  tied  with  a  white 
ribbon,  as  an  appropriate  emblem. 

Another  hatchway  was  covered  with  mattresses, 
over  which  the  American  ensign  was  thrown,  making 
a  luxurious  divan  in  the  middle  of  the  deck  where  the 
ladies  could  lounge  upon  cushions  and  pillows  after 
the  fatigue  of  dancing. 

The  rails  and  masts  were  ornamented  with  bright 
cutlasses,  tastefully  arranged  and  reflecting  in  every 
direction  the  many  lights  that  were  shining  on 
deck. 

The  men  enjoyed  the  affair  as  much  as  we  did,  and 
came  aft  to  assist  us  in  our  arrangements.  We  had 
a  splendid  crew  of  young  men,  and  we  were  proud  of 

them. 
ii 


162        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

The  ball  opened  with  a  waltz  composed  by  the 
leader  of  our  band,  who,  at  my  request,  named  it 
the  "  Arquimbeau  waltz,"  after  the  young  ladies 
whom  I  have  mentioned  as  the  belles  and  favorites 
of  the  place. 

On  the  morning  of  the  8th  of  May  the  fleet  got 
under  way  and  sailed  out  of  the  harbor.  In  the 
maneuvers  that  followed  our  vessel  was  the  fastest 
and  best  drilled  of  all,  and  we  had  to  lay-to  for  the 
rest  of  the  squadron  to  catch  up,  the  "  Delaware  " 
being  the  slowest  vessel  of  all.  When  that  vessel 
ranged  up  within  speaking  distance  Commodore 
Morris  gave  us  permission  to  part  company,  so  we 
filled  away,  leaving  the  "  Delaware "  with  her 
"  comb  "  cut,  and  we  received  the  cheers  of  the  fleet, 
whose  crews  filled  their  rigging,  bidding  us  adieu, 
and  at  sunset  we  were  out  of  sight  on  our  way  to 
Toulon.  The  "Delaware"  had  come  out  as  a 
"  crack  "  ship  to  set  us  an  example ;  and  as  we  had 
won  the  position  as  the  best  vessel  of  the  navy, 
we  showed  our  attachment  to  her  by  even  going  to 
the  Brazil  station  in  preference  to  leaving  her. 

On  the  1 3th  of  May,  after  encountering  a  heavy 
gale  in  the  Gulf  of  Lyons,  we  reached  Toulon,  and 
came  to  anchor. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

GOVERNMENT  DOCKS  AT  TOULON — OFF  FOR  THE 
BRAZIL  STATION — OUR  OLD  COMMODORE  RE- 
TURNS HOME — DINE  WITH  OUR  MINISTER  SLO- 
CUM  AT  HIS  LOVELY  HOME  OUTSIDE  OF  RIO — 
SALUTES  TO  THE  NEW  EMPRESS — RECEPTION 
CEREMONIES. 

WITH  the  Commodore  and  a  large  number  of 
officers  we  made  the  grand  tour  amongst  the  govern- 
ment docks  in  the  navy  yard  of  Toulon,  which  is  the 
grand  depot  for  the  largest  vessels  of  the  French 
navy.  All  their  line-of-battle  ships  were  laid  up 
here,  and  we  found  everything  peculiarly  interesting 
to  us. 

Our  attention  was  drawn  to  several  large  ships  that 
are  famed  in  history,  and  which  for  many  a  year  had 
braved  the  battle  and  the  breeze.  Amongst  the  most 
prominent  was  the  frigate  "  Muiron,"  which  brought 
Napoleon  from  fegypt,  and  bore  the  name  of  General 
Muiron  who  was  killed  at  Napoleon's  side  at  the 
siege  of  Toulon,  whilst  crossing  the  ditch  at  one  of 
the  forts.  All  officers  and  men  touch  their  hats  when 
they  pass  this  vessel,  which  is  moored  at  the  entrance 
of  the  sea-wall,  which  extends  across  the  harbor. 


164   FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

We  were  shown  a  quantity  of  knick-knacks  carved 
by  the  galley-slaves,  who  are  employed  in  the  works 
here.  We  were  told  that  there  were  then  three  thou- 
sand three  hundred  convicts  ;  the  poor  fellows  went 
to  their  assigned  tasks  with  heavy  chains  about  their 
legs. 

Our  mess  spent  considerable  time  in  the  studio  of 
Monsieur  Pelegrin,  who  made  crayon  sketches  of  all 
of  us,  and  they  were  wonderful  likenesses  and  done 
with  great  care.  Page's  portrait  looked  as  if  he  were 
just  receiving  a  report  from  an  officer  of  his  watch ; 
Kilty's  looked  as  if  he  were  about  to  rub  his  nose, 
which  is  a  habit  of  his  ;  whilst  West,  our  marine 
officer,  appeared  as  though  expecting  the  admiration 
of  all  who  looked  upon  him.  He  had  asked  Pelegrin 
to  make  it  pretty,  as  he  wanted  to  send  it  to  his  wife. 

On  the  morning  of  May  2Oth  we  sailed  from  Tou- 
lon, and  reached  Port  Mahon  on  the  evening  of  the 
22d.  We  were  detained  there  by  bad  weather  until 
the  29th,  when  the  ship  was  unmoored  and  we  sailed 
for  our  station. 

On  the  nth  of  June  we  were  in  Gibraltar  Bay  at 
anchor,  head-winds  and  calms  having  made  our 
passage  against  the  current  very  slow.  A  day  or 
two  of  pleasure  there  was  all  we  were  permitted  to 
enjoy  when,  before  a  favorable  wind,  we  sailed  for  the 
coast  of  Brazil,  reaching  Rio  after  a  favorable  but 
uneventful  passage. 

In  August,  our  old  Commodore  (Morgan)  left  us 
for  home,  to  our  regret,  as  we  were  all  attached  to 
him.  I  remember  the  farewell  dinner  we  gave  him 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        165 

in  the  wardroom.  Page,  our  caterer  and  the  presid- 
ing officer  on  the  occasion,  made  him  a  pretty  little 
speech,  to  which  he  responded  with  much  feeling. 
All  of  us  expressed  our  regrets  at  his  leaving  us,  and 
showed  to  our  other  guests  what  a  favorite  he  was 
with  us. 

When  he  left  the  ship  the  rigging  was  manned  in 
silence,  and  each  of  us  shook  him  by  the  hand  a 
hearty  "  good-bye!"  and  when  going  over  the  side 
he  turned  to  the  officers  and  wished  us  a  happy  ter- 
mination of  our  cruise  and  that  we  "  and  the  crew 
should  receive  the  encomiums  so  justly  due, — "  a 
short  but  feeling  valedictory.  We  on  the  quarter- 
deck and  the  men  in  the  rigging  from  the  "  truck  " 
down  to  the  deck,  stood  bareheaded,  looking  towards 
the  boat  which  bore  our  old  chief  away  from  his  ship  ; 
a  salute  of  thirteen  guns  was  fired,  and  the  men 
coming  down  from  aloft,  we  retired  to  our  staterooms 
below. 

Our  mess  was  pretty  well  broken  up.  Golds- 
borough  went  to  the  "  Columbia,"  and  subsequently 
Chatard  was  ordered  to  her  as  first-lieutenant. 

Our  minister  to  Brazil  persuaded  the  Commodore 
to  keep  the  "  Columbus  "  in  Rio,  that  she  might  be 
on  hand  to  add  to  the  festivities  on  the  arrival  of 
the  new  Empress  of  Brazil,  our  ship  being  the 
largest  in  port,  and  almost  as  much  of  a  "lion  "  as 
when  she  was  in  Genoa. 

Extensive  preparations  for  the  celebration  were 
made,  triumphal  arches  erected,  fireworks  purchased, 
etc. 


l66        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

On  September  3d,  Page,  Cadwallader,  Murray, 
Tod  and  I  went  ashore  to  dine  with  Mr.  Slocum, 
our  consul,  at  his  country  place  in  the  valley  of 
Larangeiras,  and  we  drove  out  through  most  lovely 
scenery  up  to  the  head  of  the  valley,  where  the  tall 
peak  of  the  Corcovado  reared  itself  on  high.  Just 
at  its  side  was  our  host's  mansion  in  a  most  beauti- 
ful situation.  Below  us  the  little  village  of  Cateta 
seemed  to  rise  from  the  surf  which  beat  against  its 
hard  beach  ;  further  on  in  tjie  middle  of  the  bay  was 
Fort  of  Villegagnon,  before  which  all  merchant  ships 
must  anchor  before  passing  out  of  the  bay.  Men- 
of-war  only  were  privileged  to  pass  without  being 
"  brought  to  "  by  its  cannon,  and  far  over  the  other 
side  of  the  harbor  was  the  town  of  Praya  Grande 
with  its  white  walls  and  red  tiles  making  altogether 
as  beautiful  a  coup-d'ceil  as  one  would  wish  to 
see. 

We  walked  out  with  our  host  up  a  zigzag  path  to 
a  crag  jutting  out  from  the  peak,  near  the  aqueduct 
which  supplies  the  city  with  water.  The  spot  was 
a  wild  one,  and  is  called  the  "  mother  of  waters." 
The  stream  rushes  in  a  torrent  down  the  solid  rock 
which  forms  the  side  of  the  hill  and  in  which  is  hewn 
a  gully  or  passage  to  conduct  the  water  to  its  res- 
ervoir, which  was  erected  in  1742.  Upon  a  flat  space 
on  the  rocky  hill,  were  seated  a  picnic  party,  several 
pretty  Portuguese  girls  and  elderly  ladies  and  gentle 
men.  Seeing  me  pluck  a  leaf  to  make  a  drinking- 
cup  of  it  the  ladies  sent  me  a  tumbler,  a  courtesy  I 
was  quick  to  thank  them  for. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        167 

We  pursued  our  way  around  the  mountain  for  a 
mile  and  a  half,  following  the  aqueduct  until  we 
came  to  an  opening  in  the  trees,  when  we  saw 
through  a  telescope  the  Brazilian  corvette  which 
was  the  avant-courier  of  the  Empress*  fleet  of 
Brazilian  and  Neapolitan  vessels  which  were 
approaching. 

Then  began  the  firing  of  salutes  by  the  forts 
at  the  entrance  of  the  harbor,  taken  up  by  the  men- 
of-war  in  port,  among  which  we  could  easily  dis- 
tinguish our  own  good  ship,  "  Columbus,"  by  her 
quick  firing.  The  reports  reverberated  among  the 
hills  and  were  multiplied  tenfold. 

We  returned  to  the  house  by  four  o'clock  and  sat 
down  to  a  delightful  repast.  As  we  finished  our 
dessert,  a  negro  in  livery  ran  in,  clapping  his  hands, 
and  announced  that  the  Empress  had  arrived,  and 
we  all  ran  to  the  windows,  and  sure  enough  there 
was  the  fleet,  the  Brazilian  frigate,  a  Neapolitan 
line-of-battle  ship,  and  five  smaller  vessels,  entering 
the  harbor  amidst  salvos  of  artillery. 

We  drove  into  town  after  dark  through  the  illu- 
minated streets,  and  were  soon  afterward  on  our 
way  to  the  ship. 

The  Emperor  had  gone  on  board  the  frigate  to  see 
his  bride,  and  was  returning,  each  vessel  as  he  passed 
firing  a  salute.  The  English  corvette  had  blue 
lights  burning  from  each  yard-arm,  which  threw  a 
glare  over  the  whole  harbor. 

The  view  from  our  ship  was  splendid  ;  all  the 
ships  were  firing  salutes  ;  every  steeple  and  promi- 


l68       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

nent  public  building  was  blazing  with  lights  ;  and 
the  whole  city  was  bright  with  illumination,  which 
seemed  to  extend  all  around  the  bay,  greeting  the 
imperial  bride  with  a  beautiful  spectacle. 

On  the  4th,  soon  after  8  o'clock,  when  the  em- 
peror's grand  barge  came  in  sight,  all  the  vessels 
dressed  ship  with  flags,  and  we  were  all  firing  salutes ; 
so  that,  with  the  thundering  of  cannon  from  seven- 
teen men-of-war,  there  was  noise  enough  to  gratify 
royalty  itself. 

The  procession  of  boats  passed  along  under  the 
stern  of  the  u  Columbus,"  led  by  two  boats  filled  with 
musicians  playing  the  Emperor's  march.  In  the 
midst  of  the  two  lines  of  boats  came  the  Emperor's 
magnificent  barge,  all  gilding  and  carved  work,  with 
a  canopy,  curtained  with  crimson  silk  damask,  in 
which  sat  the  youthful  Emperor  and  his  sister, 
Princess  Januaria,  and  their  attendants.  The  barge 
was  propelled  by  thirty  oars,  with  two  men  in  uni- 
form to  each  oar.  Beside  the  canopy  stood  the  im- 
perial standard-bearer,  with  the  silken  banner  waving 
over  him,  and  on  the  other  side  the  Emperor's 
chamberlain,  with  an  officer  of  high  rank  at  the 
helm  and  one  in  the  bow,  all  in  rich  uniforms. 

As  they  passed  the  Neapolitan  and  Brazilian  ships, 
their  crews  upon  the  yards  gave  three  cheers.  At 
length  they  reached  the  frigate's  side,  when  the 
Emperor  and  the  princess  went  on  board,  soon  re- 
turning with  the  bride  to  the  barge,  and  were 
rowed  back  over  the  same  course,  with  a  continuous 
salute  following  them  through  the  fleet.  There  was 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        169 

a  drizzling  rain  prevailing,  and  at  every  general 
salute  there  followed  heavy  showers  of  rain.  Not- 
withstanding this,  however,  the  shores  were  lined 
with  patriotic  Brazilians,  and  the  streets  and  palace 
square  were  filled  with  soldiers  and  lookers-on,  as 
the  imperial  pair  entered  the  cathedral  to  be  united 
in  the  holy  bonds  of  matrimony. 

Our  little  captain  said  to  me:  "Well,  they  did 
not  make  half  the  fuss  when  you  and  I  were  mar- 
ried, Mr.  Sands,  and  I'll  wager  we  married  better 
women  than  this  same  Empress  they  are  wasting  so 
much  powder  about." 

About  2  o'clock  P.  M.,  the  ceremony  being  over, 
an  imperial  salute  again  resounded  to  announce  the 
fact.  Our  ships  alone  fired  this  day  eight  hundred 
and  forty  pounds  of  powder,  which,  with  the  five 
hundred  and  four  used  up  the  day  before,  made 
thirteen  hundred  and  forty-four  pounds  of  powder 
expended  ;  so  it  may  be  imagined  how  much  seven- 
teen men-of-war  and  four  forts  managed  to  burn  up 
on  this  occasion. 

Our  midshipmen,  who  were  ashore,  came  off  and 
reported  that  "  she  was  tolerably  good-looking  for 
an  Empress,"  and  that  she  seemed  to  be  older  than 
the  Emperor.  She  left  the  cathedral  in  a  splendidly 
gilt  carnage,  drawn  by  mules  in  velvet  caparisons, 
and  attended  by  a  procession  of  state  carriages 
containing  the  cabinet,  foreign  ministers,  etc. 

In  the  imperial  carriage  sat  the  happy  pair,  ac- 
companied by  the  Emperor's  sister  and  the  Empress's 
brother,  who  is  a  lieutenant  on  board  the  Neapoli- 


1 70       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

tan  line-of-battle  ship  ;  and  it  is  supposed  that  these 
two  may  make  a  match  of  it,  as  he  is  as  poor  as  any 
other  Italian  prince,  and  would,  in  event  of  such  a 
marriage,  be  provided  for  by  the  Brazilian  govern- 
ment. 

The  imperial  party  went  out  to  the  palace  of  San 
Cristoval,  some  two  miles  out  in  the  country,  where 
they  remained  for  eight  days  before  returning  to 
the  city. 

Our  band  was  "  borroweB  "  for  the  festivities  on 
shore,  and  our  captain  permitted  them  to  keep  it  for 
the  eight  days. 

Throughout  this  period  the  illuminations  were 
kept  up  every  night,  and  the  city  and  harbor  were 
brilliant. 

On  the  /th  of  September  came  the  day  of  presen- 
tation for  the  foreign  officers  and  the  diplomatic 
corps.  Commodore  Turner  invited  only  two  of  the 
wardroom  officers  to  go  with  him  to  attend  that 
ceremony,  so  we  selected  Page  and  Cadwallader  to 
represent  us,  and  from  them  heard  the  story  of  their 
reception.  It  was  a  queer  ceremony  and  fuss  for 
the  great  honor  of  looking  at  an  Emperor  and 
Empress,  making  a  bow  and  walking  backwards  for 
a  long  distance  between  two  files  of  courtiers, 
through  the  whole  length  of  the  presence  chamber, 
etiquette  forbidding  those  present  from  turning 
their  backs  on  the  Imperial  couple. 

They  said  the  palace  was  nothing  to  compare 
with  even  the  most  ordinary  palace  in  Genoa ;  the 
Emperor  they  likened  unto  the  fat  boy  in  Pick- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

wick  —  the  Empress  being  some  five  or  six  years 
older  than  he,  quite  good  looking,  and  very  pleasant 
and  -affable. 

Some  queer  stories  were  told  about  them,  which  I 
dislike  to  repeat. 

One  evening  when  it  was  announced  that  the 
imperial  pair  would  visit  the  theater,  I  went  ashore 
and  amused  myself  strolling  through  the  illuminated 
streets,  examining  the  really  beautifully  designed 
arches  near  which  were  stationed  the  bands  dis- 
coursing delightful  music.  We  pushed  our  way 
through  the  crowd  to  the  second  arch,  a  good 
position  for  observation,  and  there  I  watched  the 
passers-by — not  seeing  one  good-looking  woman  in 
every  fifty  who  passed,  and  none  that  I  saw  had  any 
pretension  to  beauty.  The  most  of  the  Portuguese 
were  like  the  well-dressed  mulatto  girls  we  had  in 
Washington. 

After  standing  waiting  for  nearly  two  hours  we 
learned  that  the  Emperor,  in  a  boyish  freak,  had 
slipped  through  some  back  streets  into  the  theater, 
to  the  disgust  and  disappointment  of  the  assembled 
crowds. 

On  the  loth  the  Neapolitan  Prince  paid  our  ship 
a  visit  and  was  received  with  all  the  honors — the 
yards  manned  and  a  fitting  salute.  Our  Yankee 
middies  were  thoroughly  disgusted  at  being  ordered 
to  hold  the  man-ropes  for  him  as  he  came  over  the. 
side. 

It  was  a  novelty  to  us  to  see  this  first-lieutenant 
actually  commanding  his  commodore  and  captains! 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  SIEGE  OF  MONTEVIDEO — GARIBALDI  IN  HIS 
EARLIEST  BATTLE— THE  FRENCH  ADMIRAL'S  DIP- 
LOMACY— AMERICANS  LIKED  BY  BOTH  PARTIES 
BECAUSE  OF  THEIR  STRICT  NEUTRALITY — RETURN 
HOME. 

THE  state  of  affairs  in  Montevideo  was  such  in 
October,  1843,  as  to  require  the  presence  of  our  Com- 
modore in  the  River  La  Plata,  and  we  were  early 
under  way,  bound  south.  Reaching  Montevideo  we 
anchored  conveniently  near  to  the  city  and  found  the 
situation  very  serious  indeed,  as  the  place  was  still 
in  a  state  of  siege  and  surrounded  by  the  Buenos- 
Ayrean  forces,  under  Generals  Oribe  and  Urquiza, 
with  skirmishes  daily  occurring. 

Brown,  in  command  of  the  blockading  squadron, 
was  threatening  to  bombard  the  city  ;  but  as  the 
English  residents  owned  a  great  deal  of  property 
there,  Admiral  Purvis,  of  the  English  navy,  declared 
that  at  the  first  shot  upon  the  town  he  would  seize 
the  whole  of  Brown's  squadron,  and  that  he  would 
protect  the  city  with  the  whole  naval  force  at  his 
command. 

This  declaration  had  been  caused  by  a  threat  from 
172 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        1 73 

the  besieging  forces  that  they  would  act  decisively 
soon,  warning  all  foreigners  to  remove  from  danger, 
as  they  intended  to  open  fire  on  the  city,  which  the 
French  and  English  notified  them  would  not  be 
permitted. 

The  situation  within  the  walls  grew  daily  more 
distressing;  forage  for  the  cattle  became  scarce,  and 
food  supplies  more  and  more  difficult  to  obtain. 
All  sorts  of  rumors  were  current  ;  at  one  time  it 
was  said  that  the  President  Rivera  was  somewhere 
in  the  interior  in  pursuit  of  General  Urquiza  of  the 
Buenos-Ayrean  forces ;  at  another  time  Urquiza 
was  stated  to  be  marching  on  Rivera,  who  was 
retreating  before  him. 

It  was  about  the  2Oth  of  November  that  we  wit- 
nessed, from  the  top  of  a  house,  about  half  a  mile 
from  the  scene  of  action,  the  most  important 
engagement  that  took  place  during  the  whole  siege. 

A  party  of  Italians  and  other  foreigners,  who  had 
taken  sides  with  the  Montevideans,  sallied  out  on  a 
reconnoissance,  and,  venturing  nearer  than  usual  to 
the  enemy's  outposts,  came  suddenly  upon  a  larger 
party  of  the  besiegers  who  were  on  the  march 
towards  the  city  to  attack  its  outposts,  and  who 
were  thus  prepared  for  an  extensive  guerilla  or 
skirmish. 

The  colonel  of  the  Inside  party,  as  they  were 
sometimes  called,  was  so  headstrong  and  foolhardy 
as  to  ride  out  in  advance  of  his  men  and  make  a 
speech  to  the  enemy,  in  which,  with  all  the  volubility 
of  his  native  tongue,  he  set  forth  their  characters  as 


174       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

blackest  murderers  and  dastardly  cowards,  etc.,  etc. ; 
they,  of  course,  did  not  permit  him  to  read  them  a 
long  lecture  in  that  vein,  but  with  a  volley  tumbled 
him  from  his  horse,  mortally  wounded. 

A  battle  thereupon  commenced,  in  which  the  colo- 
nel's body  was  carried  off  by  the  .enemy.  His  sec- 
ond in  command,  a  gallant  Genoese  named  Garibaldi 
(who  was  also  the  commander  of  the  Montevidean 
navy)  returned  to  the  combat  with  the  determina- 
tion to  recover  his  leader's  body,  and  he  drove  back 
the  Buenos-Ayrean  forces,  pursuing  them  until  they 
came  to  close  quarters  when,  as  his  ammunition 
had  given  out,  his  men  had  to  fight  them  hand  to 
hand  with  the  bayonet  over  the  dead  body  of  the 
colonel,  which  he  succeeded  in  recovering  and 
taking  off  the  field,  although  the  enemy  was  in  far 
greater  numbers. 

Garibaldi  pushed  on  his  success  so  far  as  to  take 
possession  of  one  of  the  outposts  of  the  besieging 
party,  which  he  could  not  hold,  however,  for  want 
of  ammunition,  and  he  retreated,  his  men  not  having 
a  single  cartridge  left,  but  without  being  pursued  ;  for 
the  enemy  did  not  like  the  taste  of  the  cold  bay- 
onet, and  were  not  inclined  to  renew  the  morning's 
entertainment,  preferring  to  remain  within  their 
main  lines.  The  colonel  who  so  fell  was  considered 
a  very  gallant  fellow  ;  but  his  conduct  on  this  oc- 
casion was  imprudent  and  rash.  His  brave  com- 
rades under  Garibaldi  won  unstinted  applause  on 
their  return  from  the  field  for  their  gallant  rescue 
of  his  body.  Their  loss  was  forty  killed  and  about 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        175 

seventy  wounded,  and  it  was  supposed  that  the  op- 
posing forces  lost  far  more  heavily. 

This  was  the  first  time  the  name  of  Garibaldi 
was  heard  with  distinction.  During  the  siege  his  dar- 
ing was  several  times  exhibited  and  gave  him  prom- 
inence. His  subsequent  career  is  too  well  known 
for  me  to  do  more  than  refer  to  it,  and  I  mention 
the  above  incident,  because  we  were  witnesses  to 
this,  the  beginning  of  his  adventurous  and  dis- 
tinguished career. 

Every  morning  we  had  similar  little  excitements 
on  shore,  and  from  the  ship  we  could  see  the  skir- 
mishes outside  the  walls,  and  when  we  chose  we 
could  walk  out  and  watch  their  little  encounters  for 
amusement. 

The  people  of  the  city  at  one  time  announced  their 
intention  to  sally  out  in  force  and  compel  Oribe  to 
raise  the  siege  unless  President  Rivera  soon  made 
his  appearance,  the  gallant  bearing  and  example  of 
the  small  but  brave  band  of  foreigners  giving  them 
great  courage. 

The  enemy  by  false  rumors  tried  to  inveigle  them 
into  doing  just  that  thing,  they  having  been  heavily 
reinforced  and  prepared  to  overcome  them  when 
once  outside  of  the  walls. 

As  December  came  and  passed  away  without  suc- 
cor or  relief,  the  hopes  of  the  foreigners  began  to  fall. 
Oribe  advanced  closer  to  the  walls  and  Brown  re- 
newed his  threats  of  bombardment.  About  this 
time  the  French  admiral  began  to  intrigue  with  the 
besiegers  and  obtained  from  General  Oribe  a  prom- 


176       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

ise  that  the  Frenchmen  who  had  taken  arms  in  the 
struggle  should  be  spared  in  case  the  city  fell. 

This  was  difficult  for  him  to  assure,  as  the  besieg- 
ers had  become  very  bitter  against  all  foreigners 
except  the  Americans,  who  preserved  strict  neutral- 
ity throughout  the  troubles,  whilst  the  French  and 
English  were  forever  putting  their  "  fingers  in  the 
pie." 

My  own  sympathies  were  with  the  Montevideans 
who  called  themselves  Colorados  (or  reds),  for  they 
were  so  much  more  humane  than  their  besiegers  the 
Blanquillos  (or  whites). 

On  the  i6th  of  December  there  was  quite  a  scene 
in  the  public  square,  where  all  the  armed  French  were 
assembled  upon  the  call  of  the  French  admiral.  He 
demanded  that  they  should  lay  down  their  arms  and 
return  to  their  allegiance  to  their  own  king  and 
country,  whereupon  they  unanimously  refused,  de- 
claring that  they  had  no  confidence  in  his  promises 
of  protection,  that  he  was  an  imbecile,  and  their  con- 
sul a  rogue,  and  that  they  were  determined  to  retain 
their  arms  and  fight  for  their  adopted  country  until 
the  arrival  of  a  new  admiral  who  would  have  the 
power  and  the  will  to  protect  them  from  the  knives 
of  the  throat-cutting  Blanquillos ;  and  should  he, 
the  new  admiral,  require  them  to  lay  down  their 
arms  they  could  rely  upon  him  and  would 
obey! 

The  English,  too,  had  a  difficulty  with  the  out- 
side party,  growing  out  of  General  Oribe's  refusal 
to  receive  an  English  officer  as  a  messenger  from 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        1 77 

his  Commodore,  and  his  declining  to  hold  any  com- 
munication with  the  English. 

We  found  that  we  were  respected  by  both  sides, 
and  at  the  Buceo,  where  fresh  beef  was  obtained  for 
the  crew,  the  English  and  French  crews  were  com- 
pelled to  restrict  themselves  to  the  shore,  whilst  our 
officers  and  men  were  permitted  to  go  freely  every- 
where, even  in  the  besiegers'  camp,  and  everywhere 
about  the  port — our  boats  being  supplied  first  of  all. 

This  siege  continued  for  some  time  longer,  but  we 
were  not  permitted  to  see  its  end. 

In  Christmas  week  our  Commodore  sailed  for  Rio 
on  the  arrival  of  the  "  John  Adams,"  and  ere  long 
the  homeward-bound  pennant  was  hoisted,  and  we 
sailed  for  New  York. 

12 


CHAPTER  XXL 

JOIN  THE  DEPOT  OF  CHARTS  AND  INSTRUMENTS — 
THE  FOUNDATION  OF  THE  NAVAL  OBSERVA- 
TORY— CRUISE  IN  THE  BRIG  "  WASHINGTON  " — 
CROSSING  THE  BAHAMA  BANK  AT  NIGHT- 
BLOCKADE  ON  MEXICAN  COAST — DANCE  A  "  FAN- 
DANGO "  AT  CARMEN — A  LADY'S  AIRY  COSTUME — 
THE  CAPTURE  OF  TABASCO  BY  THE  NAVY — 
GRAPHIC  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  CAPTURE  OF 
MEXICO  AND  THE  BATTLES  PRECEDING  IT,  IN 
LETTER  FROM  THE  FIELD. 

AFTER  a  brief  period  of  rest  following  my  detach- 
ment from  the  old  "  Columbus,"  I  obtained  orders  to 
special  duty  in  connection  with  the  Depot  of  Charts 
and  Instruments,  as  it  was  styled.  I  remained 
attached  to  the  depot  under  Lieutenant  Matthew  F. 
Maury,  and  remained  there  until  after  its  transfer  to 
the  Naval  Observatory,  which  was  built  upon  its 
present  site,  then  known  as  University  Square.  I 
was  the  officer  next  in  rank  to  Maury,  and  assisted 
him  in  laying  out  the  plans  for  the  buildings  and 
grounds,  and  in  mounting  the  first  instruments  under 
Gilliss. 

In  March  or  April,  1847,  I  was  detached  from  the 

178 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        179 

Naval  Observatory  duty,  and  ordered  as  executive 
officer  of  the  brig  "  Washington,"  under  command 
of  Lieutenant  S.  Phillips  Lee,  which  was  intended 
to  go  upon  coast-survey  work  ;  but  the  Mexican  war 
coming  on,  she  was  attached  to  the  Home  squadron, 
and  our  fitting-out  hastened  as  much  as  possible  at 
the  Philadelphia  Navy  Yard,  that  we  might  join  the 
squadron  in  the  Gulf  in  time  to  participate  in  the 
contemplated  bombardment  of  Vera  Cruz. 

Our  sailing-master  was  Gustavus  V.  Fox  (after- 
wards Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in  1861), 
and  Passed  Midshipman  I.  R.  M.  Mullany  (now  a  rear 
admiral).  Our  commanding  officer,  S.  P.  Lee,  took 
his  meals  at  our  mess,  and  we  were  kept  in  jovial 
spirits  all  the  time  by  Fox's  well-timed  and  sharp 
wit  ;  even  Lee  had  to  let  his  smiles  show  themselves 
at  his  lively  sallies. 

On  the  8th  of  April  we  sailed  from  the  Navy 
Yard  on  our  way  down  the  Delaware,  and  found 
the  little  brig  to  be  all  we  could  wish.  She  behaved 
beautifully,  having  beat  to  windward  of  and  passed 
everything  under  sail  on  the  river.  The  pilot  said 
that  some  of  those  vessels  passed  were  considered 
very  fast  sailers,  and  was  surprised  to  see  a  square- 
rigged  vessel  so  easily  go  to  windward  of  the  "  fore- 
and-afters." 

By  the  Qth  of  the  month  we  were  off  the  Bahama 
Banks,  the  brig  having  proved  herself  a  fast  sailer. 
Reaching  the  Banks  after  dark,  we  were  so  eager  to 
reach  our  destination  that  Lee  consulted  me  and 
Fox  as  to  whether  we  should  attempt  the  passage  or 


l8o       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

not.  As  the  choice  lay  between  anchoring  for  the 
night  or  going  around  by  the  "  Isaacs,"  a  danger- 
ous shoal  to  look  out  for  at  night,  we  agreed  that  it 
were  better  to  try  to  cross  the  Banks  straight  ;  and 
we  three  had  an  anxious  night,  being  all  on  deck 
constantly,  with  the  "  lead  "  going  all  the  time. 

At  times  the  leadsman's  cry  of  "  Mark  above 
water  two  /"  gave  us  queer  sensations,  for  in  plain 
English  it  meant  that  the  water  was  scarcely  twelve 
feet  deep,  and  as  the  brig  drew  eleven  feet,  it  was 
close  shaving  over  the  hard  sandy  bottom.  So  we 
were  greatly  relieved  when  the  cry  of  "  Seven 
fathoms  and  no  bottom  ! "  told  us  that  we  were 
past  the  Orange  Cay,  a  reef  on  the  western  edge  of 
the  Bank. 

The  breeze  was  quite  fresh,  and  we  sped  along 
at  the  rate  of  ten  knots,  comfortably,  until  we 
reached  that  part  of  the  Gulf-stream  between  Cuba 
and  Key  West,  where  there  was  a  heavy  sea  prevail- 
ing, left  by  a  gale,  and  we  sometimes  rolled  the 
muzzles  of  our  guns  under  water. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  we  pressed  on 
under  all  the  sail  we  could  carry,  we  reached  Vera 
Cruz  two  days  after  its  capture  ;  but  the  Commo- 
dore, on  the  5th  of  May,  signaled  for  us  to  get 
under  way  and  follow  the  frigate  "  Raritan,"  which 
had  sailed  five  hours  before  us  for  Tabasco  River, 
and  at  nightfall  we  passed  her.  But  as  we  were 
communicating  with  the  sloop-of-war  "John  Adams," 
whose  mail  we  had  on  board,  the  "  Raritan  "  over- 
hauled us. 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       l8l 

We  learned  from  the  "  Adams  "  that  the  Mexi- 
cans were  in  considerable  force  at  Tabasco  ;  but  it 
was  not  thought  that  they  would  make' any  more  of 
a  fight  there  than  they  had  at  Tuxpan,  where,  after 
a  mere  skirmish  (with  fierce  firing]  they  abandoned 
their  guns  upon  the  landing  of  the  storming  party, 
whose  loud  cheers  thoroughly  frightened  them. 

We  were  elated  at  the  prospect  of  a  "brush"  with 
the  Greasers  or  Mustangs  as  they  were  euphoniously 
called,  our  vessel  being  ordered  to  blockade  off 
Laguna  until  the  Commodore  should  come  down 
from  Alvaredo  with  a  force  sufficiently  large  for  the 
attack. 

We  kept  our  men  well  drilled  at  small  arms  and 
great  guns — two-thirds  of  our  crew  being  selected 
to  go  with  the  landing  party  under  my  command. 

It  having  been  rumored  that  General  Santa  Anna 
vexed  at  his  frequent  defeats,  was  seeking  to  escape 
through  our  lines  on  his  way  to  Europe,  we 
were  kept  at  close  and  wearisome  work  on  our 
blockade  in  hopes  of  capturing  him.  On  the  night  of 
May  11,  when  our  brig  was  off  Carmen  de  los  La- 
gunas,  Ave  had  some  duty  which  kept  us  ashore 
until  after  dark,  and  several  of  us  were  persuaded 
to  join  a  party  gathered  at  the  English  consul's 
house  to  attend  a  fandango  which  had  been  got 
up  with  a  view  to  creating  a  good  feeling  with  the 
natives  of  the  place. 

We  entered  the  room  where  the  entertainment 
was  given,  and  found  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  men 
in  shirt-sleeves,  with  scarfs  around  their  waists,  hats 


1 82       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

on,  etc.,- — and  women,  beside  whom  our  mulatto 
servants  at  home  would  have  been  beauties,  their 
whole  costumes  being  the  chemise  and  petticoat, 
with  now  and  then  a  bandana  handkerchief  thrown 
over  the  shoulders. 

Three  or  four  couples  were  engaged  dancing, 
snapping  their  fingers  in  lieu  of  castanets,  the  men 
cutting  all  sorts  of  antics,  whilst  the  women,  with 
eyes  modestly  cast  down,  shuffled  around  in  a 
parrot-toed  fashion  to  the  monotonous  music  of  flute, 
fiddles  and  guitars. 

They  made  the  music  a  little  more  lively  on  our 
entrance,  and  began  a  waltz  to  it,  and  I  picked  out 
the  least  ugly  girl  I  could  see,  and  at  it  we  went  ; 
the  thermometer  over  100,  and  with  the  perspiration 
pouring  down  we  whirled  about,  regardless  of  keep- 
ing time,  and  altogether  most  ungracefully. 

It  was  a  most  disagreeable  piece  of  exercise.  I 
have  often  laughed  at  my  being  an  actor  in  such  a 
ludicrous  scene.  It  was  worse  than  the  negro 
dances  we  had  at  Cape  Francois  when  I  was  a  mid- 
shipman, and  although,  to  give  countenance  to  the 
entertainment,  all  of  the  officers  and  the  captains  of 
our  vessels  present  attended,  I  would  not  have  gone 
through  with  it  again  even  for  such  company. 

On  the  i6th  of  May  the  Commodore  came  down  to 
Carmen,  and  on  the  22d  the  sloop-of-war  "  Albany  " 
came  down  near  to  our  station,  and  we  sailed  in  her 
company  for  Campeche,  Captain  Breeze  and  Com- 
mander Mackenzie  being  sent  as  commissioners  to 
settle  the  difficulties  existing  between  us  and  the 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        183 

Yucatanese.  We  learned  that  on  the  8th  of  the 
month,  Mr.  Frist,  the  chief  clerk  of  the  State  De- 
partment, had  arrived  at  Vera  Cruz  on  his  way  to 
the  city  of  Mexico,  with  full  powers  to  negotiate, 
and  orders  for  General  Scott  to  arrest  his  onward 
march  to  the  Halls  of  the  Montezumas. 

On  the  23d  we  reached  Campeche  and  sailed  up 
to  within  three  miles  of  the  little  town  of  Lerma,  to 
the  westward  of  that  city,  and  sailed  the  next  day 
for  Sisal,  which  we  reached  on  the  25th  of  May.  I 
took  a  stroll  through  that  village,  which  I  found  to 
be  pretty  much  like  all  the  Mexican  villages  I  had 
seen — the  houses  small  and  plain,  no  sidewalks, 
and  no  flower-gardens,  but  with  tropical  plants 
growing  wild  in  abundance.  I  saw  only  two  good- 
looking  women  in  the  place.  One  of  these  was  sit- 
ting in  her  hammock  ;  she  had  quite  regular  features 
and  fine  dark  eyes,  being  apparently  taller  than  any 
of  the  Mexican  women  I  had  seen.  The  other, 
leaning  against  the  door,  was  a  young  girl  about 
fifteen  years  of  age.  Both  were  sallow  in  complex- 
ion, and  quite  cool  in  their  dress,  which  consisted 
merely  of  a  chemise,  square  and  bag-like,  with  a 
square  cut  hole  in  the  top  and  one  on  each  side  for 
the  arms  to  pass  through.  The  hole  at  the  top  was 
embroidered  around  for  a  width  of  two  inches  with 
colored  cotton  or  silk,  as  was  the  hem  of  the  gar- 
ment. Imagine  ladies  sitting  thus,  swinging  idly 
in  hammocks  in  the  middle  of  their  only  room,  the 
door  wide  open,  with  nothing  on  but  this  thin 
chemise,  partly  off  at  the  shoulders,  returning  the 


184   FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

inquisitive  gaze  of  strangers  as  modestly  as  though 
they  had  no  charms  to  reveal !  What  will  not 
custom  effect? 

At  last  Commodore  Perry,  having  taken  all  the 
enemy's  ports  on  the  Gulf  coast,  resolved  to  go  into 
the  interior  and,  ascending  the  Tabasco  River,  to 
take  possession  of  the  city  of  Tabasco. 

On  the  day  appointed  (June  i6th)  the  vessels  of 
our  fleet  were  assembled  off  the  mouth  of  the 
river  and  crossed  the  bar,  the  steamers  towing  the 
sailing-vessels,  and  we  commenced  the  passage  up 
the  river,  which  presented  many  fine  positions  for 
defense  on  its  banks,  all  of  which  we  passed  success- 
fully until  we  came  to  a  turn  in  the  river  called 
"  Devil's  Bend  "  where  it  was  reported  the  enemy 
had  determined  upon  a  stand  to  arrest  our  further 
progress. 

We  soon  made  short  work  of  that,  however,  and 
our  force  of  sailors,  landing  at  daylight  the  next 
morning,  with  the  aid  of  the  officers  hauled  the 
battery  of  light  guns  up  the  almost  perpendicular 
banks  of  the  river.  Such  enthusiastic  zeal  could 
hardly  be  surpassed,  and  we  at  once  commenced 
the  march  across  the  country  to  turn  the  flank  of 
the  forts  which  defended  the  city,  some  twelve  miles 
distant ;  some  steamers,  in  the  meantime,  feeling 
their  way  up  stream  to  co-operate  if  possible,  hardly 
expecting  to  do  much,  however,  as  the  river  was 
said  to  be  full  of  obstructions. 

But  one  halt  was  made,  about  noon,  the  enemy 
retiring  in  small  parties  before  us.  The  Commodore 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        185 

led  us  on  foot.  We  caught  one  mule  which  was 
appropriated  to  the  use  of  the  hospital  staff. 

Although  level,  the  line  of  our  march  was  over 
very  swampy  ground,  and  pioneers  were  detailed  to 
cut  brush  to  make  roads,  so  as  to  prevent  the  guns 
from  sinking  up  to  their  hubs  as  they  were  being 
dragged  along,  at  times  whole  companies  being 
necessary  at  the  trail  ropes  to  take  them  over  diffi- 
cult places. 

Now  and  then,  as  we  went  on,  guns  from  the 
steamers  told  of  the  progress  they  were  making  to- 
wards the  city,  and  finally  we  reached  the  enemy's 
fortifications,  and  a  charge  was  at  once  made 
upon  them.  We  gave  them  time  to  fire  but  a  few 
guns  before  the  sailors  were  over  the  parapets  and 
into  the  fort,  and  on  we  went  at  double-quick  to- 
wards the  city,  the  enemy  in  flight  before  us.  We 
soon  seized  every  point  of  vantage,  and  by  sunset 
were  in  full  possession,  with  batteries  planted  in  the 
principal  plaza  of  Tabasco. 

In  the  general  order  issued  by  the  Commodore 
he  expressed  it  that  "  his  only  regret  was  that  the 
enemy  did  not  stand  more  bravely  to  his  guns," 
and  having  accomplished  his  object  he  shortly  sent 
the  greater  part  of  his  force  down  the  river. 

From  the  masthead  of  the  brig,  I  made  a  sketch 
of  the  windings  of  the  river  to  the  Devil's  Bend,  and 
thence  the  route  marched  to  the  city,  which  my 
coast-survey  experience  enabled  me  to  do  with  con- 
siderable accuracy.  The  Commodore  heard  of  it 
and  sent,  through  his  fleet  captain,  fora  copy  of  it, 


1 86       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

and  with  a  few  corrections  thereon  as  to  the  force 
detailed,  he  sent  it  to  the  Department  with  his 
report  of  the  action. 

The  correspondent  of  the  New  Orleans  Picayune 
also  used  a  copy  of  my  sketch  to  illustrate  his  letter 
to  his  paper. 

The  Commodore  sent  to  our  commanding  officer 
a  complimentary  letter  as  to  the  part  we  had  taken, 
and  then  ordered  us  to  Sisal,  and  after  a  short  time 
there  we  were  ordered  to  Pensacola. 

In  August  I  received  an  interesting  letter  from 
my  brother-in-law,  William  H.  French,  then  a  second- 
lieutenant  in  the  Second  U.  S.  artillery — a  West- 
Pointer  who  subsequently  was  one  of  General 
McClellan's  favorite  commanders  and  was  bre- 
veted major-general  in  the  regular  army  for  his 
distinguished  services  in  battle — written  from  San 
Angel,  and  detailing  several  important  battles  in 
which  he  had  participated  ;  and  as  it  is  interesting 
because  of  the  graphic  sketches  written  on  the  field 
of  battle,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  give  it  verbatim  as 
a  close  to  this  chapter. 

"  SAN  ANGEL,  before  the  City  of  Mexico, 
August  27,  1847. 

MY  DEAR  FRANK, 

Amid  the  bustle  of  camp  I  find  time  and  oppor- 
tunity to  write  you  to  tell  of  my  weathering  the 
iron  storm  which  swept  away  so  many  of  my 
regiment. 

Our  army  operated  on  two  lines  which  met  at  a 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        187 

point  called  Cherubusco,  the  intersection  of  the  San 
Augustin  cause\vay  with  the  great  Acapulco  road. 

We  had  marched  from  Chalco,  making  a  detour 
to  the  rear  of  the  city.  Worth  leading,  found  him- 
self before  the  enemy  strongly  fortified  at  San 
Antonio  ;  he  here  encamped.  The  other  portion  of 
the  army  moved  over  a  ridge  of  mountains  of  lava 
formation,  and  on  the  evening  of  the  iQth  were  in 
presence  of  an  entrenched  camp  at  Contreras,  and 
under  a  most  terrific  fire  from  the  heavy  batteries 
in  its  front. 

At  night  Generals  Twiggs  and  Pillow,  having 
returned  to  San  Augustin,  General  Smith  was  left 
in  command,  and  organizing  a  plan  of  attack, 
awaited  the  coming  of  day  to  put  it  into  execution. 

The  force  of  the  enemy  in  position  was  7000  in- 
fantry and  cavalry  and  twenty-two  pieces  of  artillery, 
three  i6-pounders,  two  8-inch  howitzers  and  a  small 
mortar  included,  under  the  command  of  Valencia. 

Towards  sunset  Smith  made  dispositions  to  attack 
Santa  Anna  (who  was  a  mile  in  our  rear  with  a  force 
of  12,000  men  drawn  up  in  two  lines)  upon  his 
right  flank,  but  suddenly  changed  his  plans  and 
leaving  Shield's  brigade  in  the  village,  with  orders 
to  extend  his  line  and  increase  the  number  of  his 
camp-fires  to  deceive  Santa  Anna,  he  moved  by  the 
right  flank,  and  at  daylight  the  enemy  saw  him  in 
the  rear  of  their  strong  works ;  a  few  volleys  of 
musketry  sufficed  to  get  our  men's  blood  up,  for 
they  were  chilled  by  the  rain  which  had  fallen 
during  the  night  in  torrents,  and  then  there  arose 


1 88       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

that  fearful  shout  which  precedes  the  charge ;  the 
rush  was  made,  and  the  enemy,  seized  with  terror, 
fled  in  confusion,  leaving  all  their  artillery,  includ- 
ing two  guns  of  Washington's  battery  lost  at  Buena 
Vista,  which  his  own  regiment  had  the  good  fortune 
to  re-capture,  1500  prisoners  and  over  700  killed, 
the  wounded  in  proportion. 

Our  battery  had  no  share  in  this  part  of  the 
"Battle  of  Mexico,"  remaining  on  the  crest  of  the 
ridge  all  the  night  of  the  I9th.  We  had  the  pleas- 
urable sensations  of  being  under  the  fire  of  their 
heavy  shot  and  shells  for  six  hours,  with  the  knowl- 
edge that  our  light  guns  could  not  do  anything  in 
return  ;  but  our  time  was  to  come.  After  the  fort 
was  carried  we  were  able  to  drag  our  pieces  down  a 
terrible  descent,  by  hand,  not  at  all  improved  by 
the  enemy's  artificial  obstructions. 

At  8:30  A.  M.  we  were  on  the  Acapulco  road  and 
dashed  at  a  gallop  toward  San  Angel,  where  we  took 
the  advance.  As  our  battery  flew  past  the  different 
divisions,  the  army  gave  us  three  cheers,  and  on  we 
went,  some  mounted  rifles  in  advance.  A  party  of 
Lancers  gave  us  a  volley  at  the  head  of  the  main 
street  and  took  to  flight ;  the  music  of  escopettes 
was  not  new  to  us. 

A  few  minutes  brought  us  up  to  where  the  enemy 
were  prepared  to  give  us  battle.  For  a  moment 
we  halted  whilst  the  1st  Artillery  marched  past  us 
taking  the  left  fork  of  a  road,  of  which  we  then  took 
the  right,  both  opening  in  front  of  the  Mexican 
works. 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        189 

Our  position  was  in  an  open  field,  the  mud  hub- 
deep.  We  sprung  into  battery  under  the  heaviest 
fire  that  can  be  conceived,  from  a  bastioned  work 
having  seven  guns  bearing  onus,  and  the  fire  of  1500 
muskets  from  the  roof  of  a  large  convent  in  its 
gorge.  Our  fire  soon  occupied  their  attention  and 
drew  everything  upon  us.  We  swept  their  infantry 
from  the  roof,  but  only  to  rally  behind  the  curtain 
of  the  bastion.  Our  battery  took  the  storm  of 
grape,  shell,  round  shot  and  musketry  for  an  hour 
and  a  half,  within  musket  range. 

We  lost,  in  killed  and  wounded,  twenty-two  men, 
two  officers,  and  twenty-three  horses.  As  soon  as 
our  infantry  had  gained  the  rear  our  fire  ceased  and 
we  limbered  up,  still  under  heavy  fire,  some  of  our 
guns  having  but  two  horses  out  of  six  left.  Captain 
Taylor  and  myself  were  the  only  ones  left  mounted. 

The  1st  Artillery,  marching  by  the  left  road,  poured 
itself  upon  a  battery,  the  first  discharge  killing 
Captains  Capron  and  Burke  and  Lieutenant  Hoffman, 
First-lieutenants  Johnstone  and  Irons  were  mor- 
tally wounded  at  different  points.  Martin  had  his 
right  arm  taken  off  at  the  shoulder  as  we  came  into 
battery;  he  is  doing  well. 

The  fort  was  carried  by  the  3d  Infantry  and  1st 
Artillery,  other  troops  following.  Over  1200  prison- 
ers and  seven  pieces  of  artillery  were  here  surrendered 
—dead  and  wounded  quantum  sufficit  ad  nauseam  ! 

When  the  enemy  were  defeated  at  Contrares  on 
the  morning  of  the  2Oth,  Santa  Anna  broke  up  his 
camp  and  strengthening  Cherubusco  returned  to  the 


190        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

city,  and  seeing  San  Antonio  completely  turned, 
ordered  the  artillery  to  be  withdrawn.  Worth, 
pushing  ahead  to  storm  this  work,  found  it  evacuated, 
and,  pursuing,  rapidly  overtook  and  captured  eight 
pieces  of  artillery.  On  one,  a  thirty-two-pounder,  was 
written  "  Mata  Yankees." 

Going  a  little  too  fast  Worth  soon  butted  his 
head  against  a  T£te  du  Pont,  having  a  i6-pounder 
sweeping  the  causeway.  This  gun  had  also,  a  cross- 
fire on  our  battery.  He  marched  his  men  over  this 
work,  which  was  the  most  complete  field  fort  I  ever 
saw.  Here  three  more  guns  were  taken.  The  enemy 
by  this  time  were  in  full  flight  and  our  troops  pur- 
suing made  great  havoc  with  them. 

Phil  Kearney,  ist  Dragoons,  determined  to  have 
his  full  share  of  glory,  charged  up  to  the  city  gates, 
and  returned,  leaving  an  arm  instead  of  his  gauntlet 
at  the  barrier,  the  enemy  having  given  him  a  dis- 
charge of  grape. 

Some  other  hard  fighting  took  place  at  other 
positions  of  which  I  know  nothing  as  yet,  the  reports 
not  being  published. 

The  whole  resulted  in  the  enemy's  loss  of  three 
forts,  thirty-nine  pieces  of  artillery,  3000  prisoners, 
including  seven  generals  and  400  other  officers,  and 
over  3000  killed  and  wounded,  and  the  dispersion  of 
an  army  of  over  20,000  men.  Our  loss  in  killed  and 
wounded  about  IOOO  men  and  sixty-eight  officers. 

You  will  not  think  it  strange  that  I  have  said  so 
much  about  our  battery,  when  I  say  that  our  isolated 
position  and  the  tight  place  it  was  necessary  for  us  to 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

occupy  for  the  sake  of  others  gave  no  opportunity 
for  general  observation.  General  Smith,  with  the  3d 
Infantry,  were  near  us  under  cover  of  some  houses, 
waiting  for  the  proper  moment  to  make  a  charge. 
General  Smith  said  that  our  battery  was  the  admira- 
tion of  all  who  beheld  it,  and  that  he  would  see  that 
it  was  highly  noticed  in  the  proper  quarters. 

It  is  universally  acknowledged  that  we  were  in  the 
hottest  place  occupied  by  any  body  of  troops  during 
this  war.  Some  of  our  men  who  were  with  the  battery 
in  the  streets  of  Monterey  say  that  they  thought  that 
the  hottest  place  in  the  world,  and  all  they  can  say 
for  this  is  that  it  was  worse. 

You  will  be  gratified  to  learn  that  I  have  been 
mentioned  with  distinction  in  at  least  one  report — the 
only  one  I  have  yet  seen.  My  horse  had  a  grape- 
shot  across  his  nose  and  one  across  his  left  leg;  but 
he  was  not  disabled,  and  carried  me  through  the  day. 
Once  I  dismounted  to  reconnoiter  and  a  ball  struck 
the  seat  of  my  saddle.  Six  men  were  shot  down  at 
my  right  piece  ;  the  grape  fairly  rattled  on  the  gun, 
carrying  away  the  linstock,  breaking  the  lock,  and 
knocking  off  the  thumbstall  of  No.  3,  who  was  stop- 
ping the  vent. 

I  was  thrown  in  rear  of  this  gun,  on  account  of 
the  right  gun  of  the  other  section  being  out  of 
position,  a  ditch  being  across  its  proper  place.  I 
brought  it  and  placed  it  between  my  two  guns.  The 
other  subs  having  been  keeled  over,  I  had  to  super- 
intend four  guns  ;  to  make  matters  worse,  Taylor's 
horse  planted  his  four  legs  and  would  not  budge  a 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

foot.  I  did  the  perambulating,  my  steed  Tom 
performing  wonders  in  the  way  of  ditch-jumping, 
and  standing  all  kinds  of  fire.  We  were  so  near 
that  the  tin  of  a  canister  cut  a  corporal's  throat,  and 
the  sabots  flew  in  all  directions.  So  much  for  so 
much! 

I  saw  Lieutenant  Raphael  Semmes  and  C.  R.  P. 
Rodgers  at  Tacubaya,  a  few  days  since — Semmes  is 
on  Worth's  staff  as  additional  aide,  and  Rodgers  is, 
or  was,  with  Pillow.  Semmes  I  am  quite  intimate 
with,  and  saw  much  of  him  during  our  long  halt  at 
Puebla.  We  used  to  visit  the  senoritas  together. 

I  shall  direct  this  letter  to  the  fleet  in  general, 
hoping  it  may  reach  you. 

By-the-bye,  there  is  an  armistice,  for  the  purpose 
of  negotiating  a  peace,  which  keeps  us  out  of  the 
city,  at  which  the  army  is  infernally  mad,  a 
mutiny  could  be  gotten  up  at  the  shortest  notice. 
We  will  get  there  somehow  or  other,  now  mark ! 
Yours  affectionately, 

WILL  F." 

On  the  25th  July  we  sailed  from  Pensacola  and 
were  engaged  in  deep-sea  soundings  in  the  Gulf  and 
Gulf-stream — closing  our  surveying  work  in  Septem- 
ber, when  we  returned  north. 

This,  although  a  short  cruise,  was  the  most  uncom- 
fortable one  I  ever  sailed,  and  I  never  look  back  to 
it  with  any  gratification. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

ORDERED  TO  THE  BIG  "  PORPOISE  " — SAIL  FOR 
COAST  OF  AFRICA — REACH  CAPE  DE  VERDE — 
CAPTAIN  CANOT  THE  CELEBRATED  SLAVE-TRADER 
—CAPTURE  OF  A  SLAVER  UNDER  BRAZILIAN 
COLORS — OUR  CAPTAIN  LETS  HER  GO — CALI- 
FORNIA GOLD  HUNTERS — SANTA  CRUZ — THE 
AMAZON  ARMY  OF  THE  KING  OF  DAHOMEY. 

BEING  detached  from  the  brig  "  Washington  "  on 
our  return  north  I  was,  after  a  very  few  weeks'  rest, 
ordered  to  join  the  brig-of-war  "  Porpoise,"  com- 
manded by  Captain  Gordon  and  about  to  be 
ordered  on  a  cruise  to  the  coast  of  Africa. 

This  was  not  the  most  agreeable  prospect,  nor 
was  the  duty  such  as  one  would  seek  for,  but  duty 
is  duty — and  as  some  one  would  have  to  perform  it, 
no  one  should  seek  to  avoid  it — and  with  this 
presage  of  what  my  duty  required  of  me  I  promptly 
made  all  my  arrangements  for  the  comfort  of  my 
family  whilst  I  was  away,  and  reported  on  board  at 
the  Norfolk  Navy  Yard,  in  the  fall  of  1847. 

We  received  our  sailing  orders  in  January,  1848.  I 
had  been  hard  at  work  with  an  excellent  and  a  willing 
crew  and  good  officers,  to  get  the  ship  in  readiness 
for  sea.  All  the  rigging  was  overhauled,  provisions 


194       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

stowed,  crew  daily  drilled  at  great-guns  and  exer- 
cised in  loosing  and  furling  sails,  etc.,  so  that  on  the 
day  that  Captain  Gordon  came  off  to  inspect  her, 
he  had  to  compliment  me  upon  the  admirable  con- 
dition she  was  in,  and  upon  the  state  of  efficiency 
to  which  I  had  brought  my  crew — I  being  his  exe- 
cutive officer.  With  the  fine  crew  and  the  efficient 
officers  I  had  to  assist  me,  I  had  been  able  to 
accomplish  a  great  deal  since  we  went  into  commis- 
sion. So  that  ere  we  left  port  the  little  brig  "  Por- 
poise "  was  looked  upon  as  a  fine  specimen  of  her 
class,  and  her  drills  won  the  commendations  of  the 
old  officers  who  watched  them  now  and  then. 

My  brother  Charles,  being  offered  the  position  of 
clerk  to  the  captain,  accepted  it,  and  I  was  glad  of 
the  prospect  of  having  him  with  me.  On  the  Qth 
of  January  we  dropped  from  the  Navy  Yard  to  the 
magazine,  and  took  in  our  supply  of  ammunition 
for  the  cruise — and  soon  afterward  were  under  way 
from  Hampton  Roads,  bound  out  towards  the  broad 
ocean,  on  our  course  for  Cape  de  Verde  Islands. 

Charles  made  himself  a  favorite  on  board  with 
officers  and  men,  and  his  beautiful  sketches,  made 
whenever  anything  of  interest  or  beauty  was  in 
sight  on  our  cruises  up  and  down  the  coast  were  ad- 
mired by  all.  Old  Commodore  Bolton  was  delighted 
with  those  he  made  for  him.  But  he  soon  tired  of 
the  discipline  of  the  ship,  and  before  six  months  of 
the  cruise  had  passed  he  obtained  permission  to  go 
home  as  bearer  of  despatches, — a  fever  contracted 
down  the  coast  having  made  him  anxious  to  return 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        195 

home, — and  he  left  us  in  Funchal  Roads,  on  a  small 
brig  bound  homewards  to  New  York,  after  a  brief 
cruise  down  the  coast  of  Africa. 

In  September  we  were  anchored  in  the  Bay  of 
Funchal,  Madeira,  our  little  brig  being  the  admira- 
tion of  the  squadron  because  of  the  ship-shape  con- 
dition and  cleanliness  in  which  she  was  always  kept. 

We  passed  our  time  here  pleasantly  in  riding  out 
to  the  different  Quintas  in  the  neighborhood,  where 
we  were  always  received  with  cordial  welcome  by 
the  English  and  Portuguese.  On  one  occasion  the 
Doctor  and  I  mounted  cavallos  and  rode  out  to  call 
upon  the  Gordons,  spending  a  delightful  day.  As 
we  strolled  the  grounds  looking  down  upon  the  bay, 
we  could  see  our  little  brig  seeming  more  diminu- 
tive from  the  elevation  from  which  we  viewed  her. 
We  returned  to  Funchal  in  time  for  dinner  with 
our  consul,  Mr.  March,  who  was  most  charming  in 
his  reception  of  us. 

On  the  i /th  of  September  we  got  under  way  for 
Porto  Praya,  in  company  with  the  "Jamestown," 
from  which  port  we  soon  afterwards  sailed  down 
to  the  slave  coast. 

The  26th  of  November  saw  us  off  the  coast  in  com- 
pany with  the  schooner  "  Ohio,"  upon  which  sus- 
picion had  fallen  as  being  a  "  slaver." 

Our  captain  used  to  sit  all  day  with  the  darkeys 
on  shore,  listening  to  their  tales  of  the  slave-dealers, 
and  under  their  information  believed  that  every 
vessel  flying  "  the  stars  and  stripes  "  was  engaged 
in  aiding  and  abetting  the  slave-dealers.  It  was 


196       FROM    REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

now  suspected  that  the  "  Ohio  "  was  to  carry  the 
famed  adventurer  and  slave-dealer  Captain  Theodore 
Canot  (whose  career,  so  successful  in  his  nefarious 
business,  made  him  for  many  years  a  prominent  man 
on  that  coast)  from  the  Colony  to  Gallinas,  where 
he  had  a  "  factory  "  full  of  slaves.  I  went  on  board 
and  examined  her  papers  and  hold,  but  found  noth- 
ing to  excite  suspicion  except  the  fact,  which  the 
captain  admitted,  that  he  was  to  take  Canot  as  a 
passenger  and  drop  him  at  Gallinas  en  route  to 
Sierra  Leone,  He  explained  that  he  had  no  right 
to  question  his  passenger  as  to  his  business. 

Captain  Gordon  said  that  he  would  watch  him 
and  if  he  landed  that  old  slave-trader  at  Gallinas  he 
would  seize  the  vessel  as  a  prize  and  send  her  to  the 
States.  So  off  we  went  on  another  wild-goose  chase. 

The  "  Ohio  "  was  built  at  Marietta  in  February 
and  came  out  to  this  coast  as  a  trader. 

On  the  night  of  28th  November  in  a  squall  we 
lost  sight  of  the  "  Ohio,"  which  we  were  watching, 
but  in  the  morning  sighted  a  stranger,  a  saucy- 
looking  schooner,  and  fired  a  shot  to  make  her 
"  heave  to  "  or  show  her  flag.  But  she  took  no 
notice  of  our  command,  our  shot  fell  short  and  she 
was  edging  off  from  us.  We  made  all  sail  in  chase, 
but  as  the  wind  grew  lighter  we  found  she  was 
leaving  us.  We  armed  a  couple  of  boats  about 
nine  o'clock  and  I  was  off  in  pursuit  in  the  first 
cutter,  the  doctor  having  charge  of  the  gig.  We 
had  scarcely  pulled  a  quarter  of  a  mile  when  the 
breeze  freshened  a  little  and  the  brig  gradually  crept 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        197 

ahead  of  us  and  gained  on  the  schooner  which  had 
her  "  sweeps  "  out.  This  proved  to  us  that  she  was 
not  an  honest  trader,  and  that  she  wished  to  elude 
us.  So  our  men  put  their  whole  strength  to  their 
oars,  and  we  could  see  that,  as  the  wind  grew  light, 
our  brig,  also,  got  out  her  sweeps,  and  also  her 
launch,  which  was  sent  in  chase,  and  being  some 
two  miles  ahead  of  us,  we  feared  they  would  board 
the  chase  before  us.  So  I  gave  my  men  a  drink  of 
grog  to  set  up  their  backstays,  and  again  they  bent 
to  their  oars,  soon  sending  our  cutter  past  the  brig 
as  she  lay  almost  becalmed.  As  our  launch  drew 
alongside  the  chase  we  could  see  her  crew  throwing 
overboard  her  sweeps  and  her  coppers  for  cooking 
rice  for  slaves,  and  in  the  coppers  we  found  some 
papers  they  had  wished  to  destroy,  with  everything 
that  would  prove  her  character. 

I  took  possession  of  her  after  the  second-lieu- 
tenant had  been  on  board  but  a  few  minutes,  and 
found  a  Brazilian  ensign  in  the  rigging. 

I  found,  however,  that  she  had  everything  in 
readiness  for  her  occupation  as  slaver  ;  the  slave 
deck  was  laid,  coppers  in  place  ;  some  forty  or  fifty 
water-casks  filled,  etc.,  etc.:  so  I  determined  to  take 
her  down  to  the  brig  and  stood  towards  her.  I 
learned  that  they  had  thrown  over  some  eight  or 
ten  muskets  and  some  pistols  when  it  became  sure 
that  we  would  capture  her.  As  we  mounted  her 
deck  I  found  the  crew  of  eleven  men  ready  with 
their  baggage  on  deck,  knowing  that  they  would 
be  transferred  to  the  brig  when  we  reached  her. 


198       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

The  captain  had  escaped  in  his  small  boat  to  a  bark 
some  ten  miles  off  which  got  away  from  us.  He 
had  left  a  boy  of  fifteen  years  of  age  to  answer  to 
the  title  of  captain  when  I  called  for  that  person- 
age. Some  of  the  crew  confessed  that  they  were 
to  have  taken  in  their  cargo  of  slaves  the  night  be- 
fore, but  were  prevented  by  the  squalls.  I  wanted 
to  take  the  launch  and  capture  the  bark,  but  my 
men  were  fagged  out  with  their  long  pull  and  a 
rising  breeze  filled  her  stun'sails  and  she  got  away. 

The  schooner  was  a  saucy  little  craft,  and  had 
more  than  once  easily  escaped  from  the  English, 
being  a  fast  sailer,  and  having  six  sweeps  of  a  side, 
which  always  helped  her  out  of  her  difficulties  in 
calms  or  light  winds. 

They  intended  to  stow  three  hundred  slaves  in  her 
close  slave-deck,  which  was  scarcely  three  feet  below 
the  upper  deck,  and  was  built  over  the  water  casks,  so 
that  the  slaves  would  necessarily  have  been  packed 
in  a  sitting  position.  This  gave  us  a  correct  idea  of 
this  horrid  traffic  !  It  was  simple  murder,  since  so 
many  die  from  suffocation  in  their  confined  space. 

Acting  Master  Armstrong,  with  a  prize  crew,  was 
put  on  board  and  sailed  to  Monrovia. 

This  little  spurt  brightened  us  up  a  little,  for  our 
previous  humbugging  with  all  sorts  of  traders  had 
disgusted  us  thoroughly.  We  reached  Monrovia, 
on  December  1st,  and  a  prize  crew  was  detailed  to 
take  the  vessel  to  the  States. 

The  captain  called  us  into  the  cabin,  to  consult 
as  to  his  authority  to  do  this.  I  took  the  ground 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        199 

that  as  his  instructions  were  to  take  no  vessels  other 
than  American,  he  could  not  deem  her  his  lawful 
prize  as  he  had  no  right  under  his  orders  to  touch 
her.  I  had  not  taketi  down  the  Brazilian  flag  that 
was  flying  from  the  rigging,  when  I  boarded  her, 
and  I  had  before  raised  the  point.  He  finally  con- 
cluded to  give  her  up,  which  was  done  to  the  intense 
surprise  of  the  Brazilian  crew  whom  we  sent  on 
board  after  towing  her  out  to  sea  at  noon  that  day, 
and  she  was  soon  out  of  sight  to  the  southward,  to 
continue  her  nefarious  traffic. 

So  we  lost  sight  of  Canot,  who  soon  afterwards 
finding  the  English  and  American  governments  in 
earnest,  gave  up  his  traffic  as  slaver  and  reformed. 
A  narrative  of  his  eventful  career  was  published 
from  his  own  notes  in  1854  by  Brantz  Mayer. 

The  sloop-of-war  "  Portsmouth  "  came  into  the 
Roads  that  same  day  just  as  I  was  on  the  point  of 
sailing  for  Gallinas,  one  of  the  principal  slave  marts 
on  the  coast ;  but  we  remained  in  port  a  few  days 
longer  before  sailing,  and  by  the  I2th  of  December 
we  were  cruising  off  Cape  Mensurado  watching  the 
coast,  growing  every  day  more  weary  of  the  duty. 
Four  officers  had  been  invalided  because  of  the  try- 
ing climate,  and  we  were  living  in  hopes  of  orders  to 
the  Mediterranean,  the  secretary  having  said  before 
we  sailed  that  one  year's  stay  on  this  coast  counted 
as  much  as  two  elsewhere.  On  the  24th  we  got 
underway  from  Mensurado  Road  where  we  had  run 
in  for  water,  and  sailed  for  Porto  Praya  after  a  de- 
tention of  several  days  because  of  the  prevailing 


200       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

"  harmatan,"  that  disagreeable  east  wind  which  had 
set  in. 

The  prospect  of  a  cruise  in  the  Mediterranean 
waters  was  a  capital  bait  for  the  coast  cruise  ;  but 
the  brigs  had  all  the  hard  work  of  the  squadron 
whilst  the  sloops-of-war  and  frigates  had  good  times 
in  European  ports.  But  such  is  life,  and  it  is  full 
of  disappointments,  and  the  longed-for  cruise  was 
not  for  us.  On  the  /th  of  January,  1849  we  sailed 
into  Porto  Praya,  rinding  there  at  anchor  the  "  York- 
town  "  with  our  new  Commodore  on  board,  and  the 
"  Portsmouth." 

I  called  upon  Commodore  Cooper,  who  had  been 
my  old  commander  in  the  "  Columbus,"  and  had  a 
good  long  chat  with  him  about  old  times. 

What  a  delight  it  was  to  get  my  letters  from 
home,  telling  that  all  were  well  there !  I  found  a 
whole  package  of  them  awaiting  me.  My  little 
brig  was  in  such  excellent  condition  that  she  was 
the  admiration  of  the  other  vessels  in  port,  which 
was  very  gratifying  to  me. 

We  celebrated  the  8th  of  January  in  a  very  queer 
manner.  An  order  had  come  the  day  before,  from  the 
Commodore,  directing  us  to  fire  a  salute  of  thirteen 
minute-guns  to  the  memory  of  Commodore  Biddle, 
who  had  died.  We  suggested  that  it  was  the  an- 
niversary of  the  Battle  of  New  Orleans,  and  that 
minute-guns  would  scarcely  be  a  proper  salute  for 
so  glorious  a  victory,  unless  we  mourned  the  death 
of  the  British  general  Packenham.  But  the  order 
was  not  revoked,  and  so  we  carried  it  out. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        2OI 

Captain  James  Armstrong  came  to  see  our  captain, 
in  whose  absence  this  day  I  had  to  entertain  the 
visitor.  He  said  my  brig  was  the  cleanest  vessel  he 
had  seen  in  the  squadron,  and  asked  me  to  come  to 
the  "  Portsmouth "  as  his  first  lieutenant.  I  was 
flattered,  but  it  was  a  "  poser  "  ;  so  I  told  him  I  feared 
it  would  prolong  my  cruise,  and  I  wanted  to  return 
home  as  soon  as  the  brig's  cruise  was  up.  My  best 
objections  were  the  captain's  own  quarrelsome 
disposition  and  my  dislike  to  subject  myself  to  it  on 
board  ship  if  I  could  prevent  it. 

In  February  we  sailed  for  Santa  Cruz,  Teneriffe, 
where  we  anchored.  As  the  captain  always  betook 
himself  to  the  shore  whenever  we  got  in  to  a  port 
leaving  the  whole  charge  and  responsibility  of 
the  ship  unto  me,  I  always  enjoyed  being  in  port 
whilst  he  was  attached  to  the  ship,  being  then  the 
sole  master  of  my  time  and  movements. 

One  day  the  doctor  and  I  took  horses  for  a  gal- 
lop to  Laguna,  a  town  about  three  miles  back  of 
Santa  Cruz,  where  the  elite  of  the  island,  the  hidal- 
gos, reside.  About  half  way  out  we  overtook  a 
carriage,  a  char-a-banc^  introduced  by  a  French  gen- 
tleman and  the  only  carriage  on  the  island  except 
one  lately  brought  by  an  exiled  Spanish  count.  It 
being  empty,  we  accepted  the  invitation  of  the 
driver  to  mount,  giving  our  horses  to  our  valet  to 
bring  to  Laguna.  We  had  a  beautiful  view  of  the 
old  country  town  as  we  approached.  It  is  larger 
than  Santa  Cruz,  and  contains  some  large  houses  of 
the  nobility,  which  would,  in  outward  appearance, 


202        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

be  splendid  were  they  not  almost  in  a  state  of  de- 
cay. The  name  of  the  town  is  taken  from  its  situ- 
ation at  the  head  of  a  valley  which  they  say  was  once 
a  lake,  but  now  is  a  rich  and  highly-cultivated  valley. 

The  coachman  determined  to  make  the  most  of 
our  epaulets  (which  we  wore  under  orders  when 
ashore),  and  he  drove  us  up  one  street  and  down 
another,  creating  quite  a  sensation.  The  carriage 
itself  being  a  novelty,  the  noise  of  its  wheels  in 
the  street  aroused  the  natives,  and  brought  heads 
to  every  window,  which  were  soon  crowded  with 
the  faces  of  the  prettiest  Laguna  ladies.  Before  we 
had  gone  far  a  troop  of  boys  surrounded  us  and 
followed  in  our  wake,  making  our  entry  into  the 
town  quite  like  a  triumphal  march.  We  could  hear 
exclamations  on  every  side  that"  Los  Americanos" 
were  in  sight.  The  coachman  told  us  that  he  had 
been  sent  for  to  take  a  lady  to  Santa  Cruz,  and  that 
there  would  be  plenty  of  room  for  us  if  we  would 
go  with  him,  and  we  consented  to  his  sending  our 
horses  back. 

After  dinner  we  found  that  our  coachman 
had  been  to  see  the  proprietor  of  a  country  place  at 
the  other  end  of  the  valley,  which  had  a  chapel  upon 
it  called  the  Hermitage  of  La  Merced,  and  that 
gentleman  got  into  the  carriage  with  us,  and  we 
drove  through  a  lovely  country.  I  never  saw  so 
magnificent  a  picture  as  that  presented  to  our  view 
from  the  door  of  the  chapel.  We  were  at  one  end 
of  the  valley,  the  city,  with  its  steeples,  at  the 
other  ;  on  each  side  the  level  ground  was  bounded  by 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       2O3 

hills  whose  sides  were  covered  with  ripening  grain 
and  flecked  with  thatched  huts  of  the  peasantry. 

Just  over  the  city,  peering  more  than  half  its 
height  above  the  hills  that  formed  the  background, 
rose  the  Peak  of  Teyde  (known  generally  as  the 
Peak  of  Teneriffe),  whose  frozen  top  glistened  in  the 
sunshine  like  molten  silver.  It  was  beautiful,  and 
amply  repaid  us  for  the  jaunt. 

Again  we  drove  back  to  town,  and  stopped  at  a 
grand  house  with  armorial  bearings  over  the  door. 
It  was  the  residence  of  Don  Ramon  Castro,  the 
proprietaire  of  La  Merced,  who  had  driven  out  with 
us,  and  it  was  his  sister  who  was  going  back  with  us 
to  Santa  Cruz.  We  were  invited  to  enter,  and  were 
introduced  to  the  lady,  who  entertained  us  as  well 
as  was  possible  with  our  modest  acquirements  in 
Spanish  and  her  little  knowledge  of  English.  We 
found  that  two  ladies  were  going  back  with  us 
instead  of  one,  and  two  gentlemen,  and  so,  crowded 
together,  we  made  a  merry  party  on  our  return. 
Every  one  was  very  hospitable  to  us  whilst  we  were 
in  port,  and  after  the  trying  and  monotonous  months 
we  had  passed  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  our  enjoyment 
was  exceeding  great. 

On  the  5th  of  March  we  stood  out  to  sea  for  Palmas, 
in  the  Island  of  Grand  Canary,  where  we  remained 
but  a  short  time  and  then  sailed  for  Porta  Praya, 
where  we  remained  until  the  i6th  of  April,  when 
we  got  under  way  for  a  short  cruise  to  the 
Cape  de  Verde  Islands,  touching  first  at  the  Island 
of  Sal,  where  we  saw  the  extensive  salt  works  in 


204       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

operation.  Whilst  there  I  witnessed  a  terrific  com- 
bat between  a  whale  and  two  "  thrashers,"  fish 
about  fifteen  feet  long.  The  whale  had  been  feed- 
ing quite  near  to  our  anchorage,  when  the  "  thrash- 
ers "  met  it,  and  at  once  attacked  it.  The  whale 
would  "sound,"  that  is,  go  deep  down  into  the  sea, 
to  avoid  its  enemies,  but  when  it  arose  to  the  surface 
to  "  blow  "  would  find  them  waiting  and  watching, 
and  they  would,  one  after  the  other,  spring  into  the 
air  and  fall  with  sure  aim  upon  his  back,  slapping 
him  with  terrific  force,  and  keeping  the  water  boil- 
ing around  him.  The  thrashers,  being  so  much 
smaller  than  the  whale,  are  more  active,  and  readily 
escape  the  blows  of  his  tail,  getting  in  their  punish- 
ment on  him  so  effectually  that  these  combats 
usually  end  in  the  death  of  the  exhausted  whale 
'neath  the  blows  of  his  persecutors. 

On  the  25th  of  April  we  reached  "  Bona  Vista," 
and  thence  went  to  Porto  Grande,  Isle  St.  Vincent, 
on  the  2/th  ;  and  on  the  6th  of  May  reached  Porto 
Praya  in  company  with  the  bark  "  Anna  Reynolds," 
full  of  gold-hunters  bound  to  California.  The 
jovial  Californians,  as  we  called  them,  pulled  around 
our  vessels,  serenading  us  that  night,  and  after  they 
had  been  near  us  for  some  time,  we  invited  them  on 
board  and  had  a  regular  soiree  musicale  all  to  our- 
selves. Our  visitors  had  four  violins,  bass  violin, 
flute  and  drums;  we  added  one  violin,  two  fifes  and 
a  tambourine !  At  the  captain's  suggestion,  we 
sent  for  the  only  woman  in  the  neighborhood,  the 
wife  of  the  second  steward  or  cook  of  the  Califor- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       2OS 

nian — a  trim  little  Yankee  woman  of  about  twenty 
years — and  her  head  was  almost  turned  with  the 
attentions  she  received.  Our  crew  turned  out  of 
their  hammocks  to  see  the  sport,  and  our  captain 
in  his  glee  (or  perhaps  fat  "spirits"  moved  him), 
would  occasionally  order  three  cheers  to  be  given, 
and  our  boys  would  make  the  welkin  ring,  particu- 
larly after  our  national  airs  !  Captain  Gordon  de- 
voted .  himself  exclusively  to  the  feminine  !  and 
when  we  cleared  a  space  on  the  quarter-deck,  he 
waltzed  and  polkaed  with  the  "  cook 's  mate  s  min is- 
ter  s  wife  "  whilst  the  captain  of  the  "Reynolds" 
and  I  whirled  about  to  keep  him  in  countenance, 
"  doing  it  up  brown,"  as  he  styled  it.  It  was  a  rich 
performance,  and  we  laughed  for  weeks  afterwards 
at  the  recollection  of  our  pompous  little  captain's 
grace  as  he  handed  out  the  belle  of  the  entertain- 
ment for  a  waltz  ! 

The  Calitornians  were  so  happy  as  to  be  unable  to 
express  their  thanks  when  they  left  us.  We  had  all 
of  the  popular  negro  melodies  ;  when  they  could 
not  sing  the  air,  they  would  scrape  it  out  of  their 
fiddles,  blow  it  out  of  the  flutes,  or  beat  it  out  of 
the  drums.  Their  silent  hand-squeezes  spoke  the 
feelings  in  their  hearts. 

They  said  that  they  would  dream  of  that  night 
when  they  would  be  picking  up  gold  in  the  Sacra- 
mento River — one  of  them  declared  that  he  would 
"vote  the  whole  ticket  for  us  when  he  got  to  hum." 

We  were  started  off  on  a  cruise  to  leeward  on  the 
1 3th  May,  and  sailed  down  the  coast  of  Africa, 


206       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

reaching  Whydah  on  the  24th  of  June,  stopping  en 
route  at  British  and  Danish  Accra  and  Little  Popoe. 
These  trying  cruises  break  down  so  many  officers, 
"  John  Barleycorn "  and  brandy  generally  ruling 
supreme, — being  resorted  to  at  the  beginning  as  a 
preventive  for  the  dreaded  fevers  on  the  coast,  and 
gradually  becoming  a  fascination. 

While  anchored  off  Whydah  our  illustrious  com- 
mander went  ashore  and  reviewed  the  native  army 
of  women,  who  danced  and  marched  around  him 
with  their  prisoners  held  by  a  chain  ;  he  in  the 
plenitude  of  his  greatness  sitting  in  their  midst, 
clad  in  full  uniform,  cocked  hat,  epaulets  and 
sword!  whilst  I,  on  board,  under  his  orders,  fired 
a  salute  of  twenty-one  guns,  when  he  toasted  the 
black  king  of  Dahomey,  who  was  living  on  his 
gains  through  the  slave-trade  which  we  were  sent 
there  to  suppress ! 

We  found  an  American  brig  there,  but  her  papers 
were  all  right,  and  she  was  engaged  in  trading  with 
Brazil ;  but  her  decks  being  laid  for  the  stowage  of 
slaves,  we  had  not  a  doubt  that  when  a  good  chance 
were  found  they  would  run  off  a  cargo  of  them. 
These  traders  are  so  watchful  that  we  had  no  hopes 
of  a  prize  unless  we  chanced  upon  them  off  shore 
with  the  "  live  stock  "  on  board. 

I  dined  with  the  senior  captain  (Honorable 
Charles  Hastings)  of  the  British  war  steamer 
"  Cyclops,"  whilst  here — a  very  fine  gentleman ; 
and  soon  afterwards  were  sailing  southward  for 
the  Gaboon  River,  which  we  reached  on  July  3d, 


FROM    REEFER    TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        2O7 

and  as  no  pilot  came  off  I  volunteered  to  take 
the  brig  over  the  bar,  which  I  did  with  the  aid  of  a 
French  chart  of  the  entrance,  and  brought  her  to 
off  King  Glass'  town,  just  abreast  of  the  houses 
used  by  our  missionaries. 

Mr.  Wilson,  the  chief  missionary,  invited  us  to 
make  his  house  our  headquarters  when  on  shore. 
On  the  4th  of  July  we  celebrated  the  day  by  a 
salute  of  thirty  guns,  one  for  each  of  the  states  in 
the  Union.  The  French  fort  also  saluted  at  the 
same  time,  and  the  French  hospital-ship  sent  her 
pinnace  with  four  brass  six-pounders  down  abreast 
of  us,  and  they  fired  away  also  in  compliment  to  the 
day. 

We  dined  ashore  with  Mr.  Wilson.  The  houses 
were  of  bamboo  and  thatched  with  the  leaves  of 
the  same  reed,  very  neatly  arranged  and  comfort- 
able for  the  climate.  The  missionaries  achieved 
wonders  just  around  them,  but  I  was  informed  that 
when  the  negroes  went  back  into  the  interior  for  any 
length  of  time  they  relapsed  into  their  former  state 
of  barbarism. 

Our  men  nearly  filled  the  ship  with  parrots,  as 
pets,  and  their  noise  was  something  almost  unendur- 
able. There  were  plenty  of  elephants  a  short  dis- 
tance back  in  the  country,  but  I  did  not  attempt 
the  sport  of  shooting  them.  Ivory  is  one  of  the 
articles  of  commerce  here,  and  ebony,  which  is  found 
here  of  the  finest  quality. 

On  the  1 5th  of  July  we  reached  West  Bay,  Prince's 
Island. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

PORT  GRANDE — QUARREL  BETWEEN  GORDON  AND 
THE  PORTUGUESE  COMMANDANTE  —  CAPTAIN 
GORDON  DIES  OF  FEVER — ORDERED  TO  YORK- 
TOWN  "  SLOOP  OF  WAR  "—IN  COMMAND  OF 
THE  BIG  "  PORPOISE  "  HOMEWARD  BOUND — ST. 
THOMAS,  WEST  INDIES— HOME. 

I  FOUND  Prince's  Island  a  very  pleasant  place, 
with  fine  scenery  and  a  good  bay,  and  I  was  wont 
to  amuse  myself  sketching  its  picturesque  hills,  its 
nooks  and  inlets,  its  cascades  and  rivulets.  There 
was  a  fine  field  for  an  artist's  pencil,  and  I  regretted 
that  my  brother  Charles  had  gone  home  without  an 
opportunity  to  add  to  his  collection  of  sketches  at 
this  point. 

After  a  short  stay  in  port  we  sailed  with  a  fair 
breeze  up  the  coast,  bound  to  Monrovia ;  on  the 
1 2th  of  August  we  reached  Porto  Grande. 

Our  captain  here  played  the  "fire-eater"  for  a  while. 
The  military  commandante  (who  is  acting  governor 
in  place  of  the  governor-general  during  his  absence) 
had  written  a  letter  to  our  consul,  complaining  of 
the  conduct  of  one  of  our  officers  in  releasing 
two  prisoners  from  the  hands  of  the  custom-house 
guards  and  sending  them  off  to  the  brig. 

Our  commander  was  the  officer,  and  the  (so-called) 
208 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        2O9 

prisoners  were  a  part  of  his  gig's  crew  who  were 
righting.  He  told  the  consul  to  say  to  the  com- 
mandante  that  such  was  the  case,  that  the  state- 
ment in  the  letter  was  incorrect,  and  requested  that 
the  offensive  language  therein  should  be  withdrawn, 
which  the  Portuguese  refused  to  do,  offering  at  the 
same  time  any  other  satisfaction.  They  were  to 
have  had  a  meeting,  the  time  and  place  being  fixed, 
and  our  commander  was  upon  the  ground,  but  the 
commandante  did  not  put  in  an  appearance.  He 
was  "  posted  "  in  the  plaza,  and  a  report  of  the  whole 
proceedings  was  sent  to  the  governor-general  (who 
was  at  one  of  the  other  islands)  with  any  amount 
of  Portuguese  addenda. 

The  Portuguese  say  that  their  commandante 
made  a  mistake  as  to  the  place  of  meeting,  but  we 
learned  that  he  did  go  in  another  direction  with 
the  civil  authorities  ready  to  prevent  an  engagement. 

I,  of  course,  thought  it  strange  that  such  a 
method  of  settling  objections  to  an  official  letter 
should  have  been  selected  by  our  captain,  when, 
through  the  proper  official  channels,  full  redress 
could  have  been  obtained. 

On  the  3d  of  September  we  sailed  from  Porto 
Praya  and  returned  after  a  short  cruise.  Our  cap- 
tain died  here  of  a  fever  contracted  by  reason  of  ex- 
posure on  shore,  and  Captain  Marston,  senior  officer, 
to  my  surprise,  detached  me  and  ordered  me  to  the 
"  Yorktown,"  placing  Lieutenant  Rootesin  command 
of  the  "  Porpoise,"  which  soon  after  went  on  a  cruise. 

On  the  5th  of  December  the  sloop-of-war  "  Ports- 
14 


210       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

mouth/'  with  our  new  Commodore  arrived  in  port 
and  expressed  surprise  at  the  action  of  Captain 
Marston  in  my  case,  saying  that  my  cruise  should  not 
be  prolonged  by  these  orders,  but  that  I  should  go 
home  if  possible  in  the  "  Porpoise,"  several  vessels 
being  sent  to  overhaul  her  and  send  her  back  to 
this  port. 

On  December  3ist  we  received  orders  to  sail  the 
next  day  for  Monrovia,  and  on  January  1st,  1850,  we 
got  under  way  on  the  "  Yorktown  "  for  that  port,  and 
overtook  the  "  Porpoise  "  of  which  I  was  placed  in 
command  by  the  orders  of  Commodore  Gregory 
and  ordered  to  sail  for  home  by  way  of  the  West 
Indies — which  orders  were  heartily  welcomed  by  me 
after  the  long  and  wearing  cruise  in  that  trying 
climate  of  tropical  Africa. 

The  2Oth  of  March  saw  us  in  St.  Thomas,  where 
we  were  delightfully  entertained  by  the  governor, 
who  invited  a  number  of  Danish  army  and  navy 
officers  to  meet  me  at  dinner. 

On  the  28th  of  March  I  gave  orders  to  weigh  for 
sea  to  convoy  home  the  "Taney,"  condemned  as 
unseaworthy,  and  the  boatswain's  call  was  a  joyful 
one  when  he  sang  out  "  all  hands  up  anchor  for 
home."  The  crew  with  lively  work  soon  had  the 
anchor  a-peak  and  we  were  sailing  out  of  port. 

After  a  heavy  gale  off  Hatteras  which  the  little 
brig  weathered  beautifully,  we  passed  Cape  Henry 
on  the  2d  of  April  inward  bound  for  the  Norfolk 
Navy  Yard,  where  my  wife  joined  me  and  remained 
until  the  men  were  paid  off  and  the  brig  put  out  of 
commission. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

ORDERED  TO  COMMAND  THE  COAST  SURVEY 
STEAMER  "  WALKER  " — CAPTAIN  JOSEPH  FRY  OF 
THE  "VIRGINIUS" — HIS  DEATH  IN  CUBA — SUR- 
VEY-WORK IN  GULF  OF  MEXICO — AND  DEEP  SEA- 
SOUNDING  IN  GULF  STREAM — IMPORTANT  DISCOV- 
ERIES— SIGNALS  INVENTED — DEEP  SEA  SOUND- 
ING APPARATUS  AND  SPECIMEN  TUBE  DESIGNED. 

IN  May,  1850,  being  upon  a  visit  to  the  Coast  Sur- 
vey office  I  called  on  Professor  Bache,  who  paid  me 
the  compliment  of  saying  that  he  would  be  much 
gratified  if  I  would  accept  the  command  of  the  brig 
"  Washington,  "  and  although  I  had  been  home  from 
my  long  African  cruise  only  two  months  I  accepted 
his  offer,  and  was  assigned  to  the  hydrographic  sur- 
vey of  Chesapeake  Bay  south  of  Smith's  Point,  upon 
which  work  I  was  engaged  during  that  season,  re- 
turning to  the  office-work  in  the  winter. 

In  March,  1851,  I  was  offered  the  command  of  the 
steamer  "  Walker,"  and,  accepting  it,  joined  her  at 
Mobile  on  the  I4th  of  the  month.  Among  the 
officers  attached  to  her  was  passed  midshipman 
Joseph  Fry,  U.  S.  Navy,  who  afterwards  married  my 
cousin  Agnes  Sands.  He  was  one  of  the  officers 

211 


212       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

who  afterwards  joined  the  Southern  Confederacy, 
and  after  the  war  he  was  given  the  command  of  the 
filibuster  steamer  "  Virginius,"  which  was  captured 
on  the  coast  of  Cuba  whilst  carrying  arms  and  mu- 
nitions of  war  to  the  insurgents,  and  after  a  trial  by 
drum-head  court-martial,  he  and  a  large  number  of 
his  crew  were  condemned  to  death  and  immedi- 
ately shot. 

He  was  a  noble  man,  true-hearted,  upright  and 
brave.  His  trial  was  a  mockery  of  justice  ;  he  was 
not  given  an  opportunity  to  consult  with  counsel  or 
to  make  any  defense ;  but  when  he  saw  his  death 
was  resolved  on  he  strove  to  save  his  men,  but  in 
vain.  The  accounts  given  of  his  execution  were 
unanimous  in  praise  of  his  noble,  courageous  bear- 
ing, even  the  cruel  Spaniards  being  filled  with  admira- 
tion. He  was  a  devout  practical  Catholic,  and  after 
he  had  sent  for  a  priest  and  received  the  sacraments 
of  his  church,  he  walked  down  the  line  of  his  men 
as  they  stood  ready  for  execution,  and  taking  the 
hand  of  each  in  turn  asked  his  forgiveness  for  any 
wrong  done  him  and  then  facing  the  file  of  soldiers, 
with  his  eyes  unbandaged,  he  gave  the  signal  and 
fell  dead  at  the  first  volley. 

Had  the  gallant  William  B.  Gushing  reached  the 
scene  a  day  earlier  Fay's  life  would  doubtless  have 
been  saved,  as  were  the  lives  of  those  who  had  not 
been  condemned  whenCushing  compelled  their  sur- 
ender  by  his  bold  demand,  backed  by  the  threatened 
broadside  of  his  sloop-of-war. 

This  parenthetical  sketch  will  be  excused,  I  know, 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        213 

since  the  worth  of  an  officer  should  never  be  for- 
gotten, even  if  the  termination  of  his  career  should 
be  unfortunate. 

During  this  season  of  1851  I  made  surveys  between 
Pensacola  and  the  Deltas  of  the  Mississippi,  includ- 
ing the  passes  of  that  river,  and  in  the  latter  part  of 
June  sailed  homeward,  reaching  Key  West  on  the 
2Oth,  and  after  coaling  I  continued  north,  reaching 
Hampton  Roads  on  the  7th  July.  In  August  I  laid 
up  the  steamer  at  Baltimore,  Maryland,  and  trans- 
ferred my  crew  to  the  schooners  "Nautilus"  and 
"  Meredith,"  and  in  the  former  I  sailed  for  the  capes 
accompanied  by  the  "  Meredith."  Inside  of  Cape 
Henry  and  at  Lynn  Haven  Bay  I  continued  the 
hydrographic  work  until  October,  when  I  took  the 
schooners  up  to  the  Washington  Navy  Yard  and 
laid  them  up  for  the  season. 

In  December,  1852, 1  again  went  south  in  command 
of  the  "  Walker  "  to  continue  my  work  in  Section 
No.  VIII.  near  the  Deltas  of  the  Mississippi. 

From  the  time  I  took  the  "  Walker"  until,  in 
1857,  I  was  ordered  to  duty  in  the  Bureau  of  Con- 
struction, I  was  engaged  upon  this  interesting 
hydrographic  work  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  the  fields 
of  my  especial  surveys  being  the  Florida  Keys  and 
the  west  coast  of  that  state,  including  Cedar  Keys, 
Tampa  Bay  and  Pensacola  Harbor,  thence  west, 
taking  in  the  Bay  of  Biloxi,  Chaudeleur  Sound,  the 
Deltas  of  the  Mississippi,  and  the  westward  thereof, 
including  Atchafalaya  Bay  and  Sabine  Pass  on  the 
Texas  coast. 


214       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

The  five  years  of  my  work  there  making  me 
thoroughly  familiar  Avith  the  navigation  of  those 
waters  and  with  the  hydrography  of  the  entrances 
to  all  the  southern  ports  on  the  gulf. 

On  my  passages  to  and  from  my  working  grounds 
I  generally  ran  lines  of  deep-sea  soundings,  wher- 
ever practicable,  adding  this  work  to  the  special 
surveys  of  the  sections  assigned  to  me. 

In  1855,  in  the  "Walker,"  in  passing  from  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico  northward,  I  ran  a  line  of  deep-sea 
soundings  and  temperatures  through  the  Florida 
channel  and  as  far  north  as  Cape  Hatteras.  Some 
of  my  soundings  were  made  near  the  inner  edge  of 
the  hottest  or  axis  band  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  with  a 
depth  of  five  hundred  and  six  hundred  fathoms  ;  and 
many  of  them  were  on  the  range  of  hills  discovered 
by  Lieutenants  Tunis  A.  M.  Craven  and  John  N. 
Maffitt  beyond  the  axis  of  the  Gulf  Stream  which  I 
traced  with  considerable  success,  my  work  of  that 
season  receiving  the  warm  compliments  of  Professor 
Bache,  who  made  it  the  subject  of  a  special  chapter 
on  the  Gulf  Stream  theories  in  his  annual  report  for 
year  1855. 

When  I  commenced  this  interesting  work,  in  1851, 
I  encountered  great  obstacles  to  successful  soundings 
where  there  was  any  considerable  depth,  the  heavy 
weight  of  the  deep  sea  lead  then  in  use  being  such 
as  parted  the  line  invariably,  losing  to  us,  in  conse- 
quence, the  leads  and  specimen  cups,  and  depriving 
us  of  the  soundings  sought  to  be  made. 

In  the  hydrography  of  our  coast  line,  it  was  at  an 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       21 5 

early  date  appreciated  that,  for  the  scientific  in- 
vestigation and  study  of  the  life  in  the  great  ocean 
depths,  and  of  the  geological  formation  and  char- 
acter of  the  ocean's  bottom  extending  along  our 
coast  and  from  our  shores  out  across  the  ridges 
bounding  the  current  of  the  Gulf  Stream, — and  in  the 
depths  of  the  ocean  beyond,  as  well  as  on  the 
plateaux  and  the  "deeps"  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, — 
great  value  was  to  be  attached  to  the  specimens  of 
the  bottom  that  could  be  brought  to  the  surface. 

In  the  infancy  of  this  work  the  old  lead  with  its 
lower  end  hollowed  out  and  filled  with  tallow,  to 
which  the  specimens  were  to  become  attached  by 
contact,  gave  all  the  knowledge  attainable  of  the 
bottom  formations  along  the  coast,  and  naturally 
these  specimens  were  scanty  and  insufficient. 

The  importance  of  procuring  better  specimens 
led  to  various  devices  from  different  parties,  and  in 
1885  I  submitted  to  Professor  Bache  a  device  of  a 
"specimen  tube  or  box"  to  be  inserted  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  ordinary  deep-sea  lead,  which,  in  the 
hundreds  of  soundings  I  have  made  with  it,  never 
failed  to  bring  up  in  perfect  state  abundantly  large 
specimens  of  the  bottom  at  any  depth  from  which 
the  strength  of  the  best  line  could  bring  back  the 
weight. 

I  was  gratified  to  see  its  adoption,  not  only  in  the 
coast  survey  and  naval  services,  but,  also,  as  a 
valuable  instrument  for  use  by  the  merchant  marine, 
its  simplicity  and  its  success  causing  it  to  be  strongly 
recommended  by  the  Board  of  Trade  of  the  prin- 


216       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

cipal  seaports  and  a  description  of  it  with  drawings 
being  given  a  place  in  the  Coast  Survey  report  of 
1855. 

I  also  invented  and  put  into  practical  use  a 
design  for  gas-pipe  tripods  for  revolving  signals 
and  a  "  heliotrope,"  the  object  of  which  was  to 
facilitate  our  surveying  work,  enabling  us  to  locate 
positions  of  signals  in  places  exposed  to  the  action 
of  the  sea ;  this  experience  showed  to  be  so  endur- 
ing as  to  be  serviceable  for  years  without  injury, 
and  Professor  Bache  endorsed  its  utility  by  includ- 
ing descriptions  and  drawings  of  it  in  that  same 
year's  report. 

As  the  importance  of  deep-sea  soundings  became 
more  appreciated,  the  failure  to  secure  specimens 
from  great  depths,  by  reason  of  the  parting  of  the 
lead  lines,  in  the  efforts  to  haul  in  the  lead,  caused 
great  annoyance  to  those  engaged  in  the  work.  I 
endeavored  to  solve  the  problem,  and  finally  hit 
upon  a  device  by  which  the  weights,  which  carried 
my  specimen  tube  to  the  bottom,  became  detached 
at  the  instant  the  bottom  was  touched,  and  there 
remained  only  the  light  tube  and  its  thin  rod  to  be 
hauled  in. 

With  this  apparatus,  to  which  the  Massey  indi- 
cator was  attached  to  give  correctly  the  depth 
reached,  I  was  enabled  to  bring  up  large  specimens 
from  the  depth  of  one  thousand  five  hundred  and 
eleven  fathoms,  even  with  the  rough  castings  made 
for  my  earlier  experiments — an  ample  specimen  of 
soft  blue  mud  being  brought  up  at  that  depth  in 


NOTKS 


The  rod  (aa)  is  of  half-inch  round 
iron  about  18  inches  long,  with  a 
swivel  in  the  upper  end,  for  the 
lead  line,  and  a  socket  on  the  lower 
end  to  receive  the  tenon  of  the 
specimen  tube  (b  fastened  by  a 
key  (c>;  two  wire  rods'  (i )  about 
a  foot  in  length  on  each  side  of  the 
rod  connect  the  flange  (g)  of  the 
specimen  tube  with  a  small  band 
(h)  around  the  rod,  having  two 
spurs  pointing  downwards.  Sur- 
rounding the  sounding  rod  are  two 
cast  iron  weights  of  semiellip-soid- 
al  form  tee)  grooved  on  the  flat  sides 
to  receive  the  rod  and  to  allow  the 
valve  connecting  with  the  rod  to 
play  freely  between  the  weights. 
Holes  of  K-inch  diameter  are 
drilled  in  their  lower  ends  to  re- 
ceive the  plugs  (  d  d )  which  are 
hinged  upon  the  ends  of  the  key  (c) 


and  which  keep  the  weights  in 
their  seats  ;  in  the  upper  ends  holes 
are  drilled  of  %-inch  in  diameter, 
to  receive  the  small  spurs  on  the 
band  (h)  which  confine  the  weights 
to  the  rod. 

As  the  tube  pierces  the  bottom 
the  sliding  valve  is  raised  admit- 
ting the  specimen  and  also  lifting 
the  band  (h)  connected  with  it  by 
the  wire  rods  (f )  which  releases  the 
upper  end  of  the  weights  and  al- 
lows them  to  fall  from  the  rod 
leaving  nothing  but  the  rod  and 
specimen  tube  to  be  brought  on 
board. 

The  upper  portion  of  the  rod  is 
flattened  and  pierced  with  two 
holes,  to  allow  the  self-registering 
indicator  to  be  clamped  to  it. 
f  i,  i,  Springs  attached  to  rod  (aa) 
to  throw  off  weights  when  disen- 
gaged from  the  band  (h). 


DEEP   SEA   SOUNDING   APPARATUS.—  Page  2  1 6. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       217 

the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  south  of  the  Mississippi  deltas 
en  route  to  Key  West.  This  was  afterwards  improved 
upon ;  and  notwithstanding  the  inventions  of  others 
which  have  since  been  used,  I  think  my  own 
specimen  tube,  with  its  self-detaching  weight,  as 
perfected  when  on  the  California  coast  will  secure 
as  great  accuracy  in  its  work  as  any,  and  it  has  been 
a  source  of  regret  to  me  that  my  duty  since  1862 
has  been  such  as  to  prevent  my  personally  super- 
intending its  use,  that  I  might  demonstrate  its 
excellence  and  bring  it  more  prominently  before 
scientists. 

My  best  working  model  which  I  was  bringing 
home  from  California  to  submit  to  the  Navy  De- 
partment I  gave,  at  his  earnest  solicitation,  to  Cap- 
tain Arsenieff  of  the  Russian  navy,  a  fellow-pas- 
senger to  New  York,  thinking  I  could  easily  replace 
it,  but  the  hustling  work  of  the  coast  blockade  kept 
me  otherwise  employed,  and  I  had  no  opportunity 
to  do  this. 

Professor  A.  D.  Bache  had  a  drawing  and  descrip- 
tion of  my  improved  deep-sea  sounding  apparatus 
published  with  his  annual  report  for  the  year  1857. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

1 86o-6l — BEARER  OF  SECRET  DESPATCHES  TO  THE 
GULF  SQUADRON — DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  NAVY 
YARD  AT  NORFOLK,  VA. — ORDERED  TO  COMMAND 
COAST  SURVEY  STEAMER  "  ACTIVE  "  ON  PACIFIC 
COAST — AMUSING  INCIDENT  IN  ACAPULCO  BAY — 
STEAMER  "  ORIZABA  "  AGROUND  IN  A  FOG — 
REACH  SAN  FRANCISCO  JULY  4,  1 86 1. 

IN  June,  1858,  I  was  detached  from  coast  survey 
duty  and  ordered  to  duty  in  the  Bureau  of  Con- 
struction at  the  Navy  Department,  upon  which  I 
was  kept  occupied  until  the  year  1861.  It  was  dur- 
ing these  years  that  the  cloud  which  had  been  long 
hovering  upon  the  political  horizon  rapidly  as- 
sumed threatening  proportions,  and  finally,  in  1861, 
burst  upon  the  country  with  such  disastrous  re- 
sults. The  growth  of  that  sentiment  in  the  South 
leading  to  the  great  rebellion  it  is  not  my  purpose 
to  discuss,  so  extensively  has  it  been  treated  and 
elaborated  by  those  who  have  written  of  the  polit- 
ical history  of  our  country  during  those  dark  days 
that  it  is  an  open  book  to  all. 

My  purpose  in  these  chapters  being  simply  to 
sketch  my  own  personal  experience  and  to  get 
218 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        2IQ 

down  my  recollections  without  enlarging  much  upon 
the  brief  notes  I  made  at  the  time,  I  desire  to  keep 
up  what  of  interest  may  be  drawn  from  what  passed 
before  my  own  eyes. 

To  the  officers  who  were  born  in  or  appointed 
from  the  Southern  or  Middle  States  the  situation 
became  particularly  trying,  and  every  interest  of 
blood  and  affection  was  brought  to  bear  upon  them 
to  weaken  their  allegiance  to  the  Union,  and  to  win 
them  over  to  the  cause  of  what  they  called  "  the 
Suffering  South." 

To  resist  these  appeals  and  to  show  up  the  weak- 
ness and  impropriety  of  such  arguments  when  ad- 
dressed to  the  question  as  to  the  course  demanded 
by  the  call  of  duty  and  honor  in  a  contingency 
involving  the  very  life  of  the  government  which 
they  were  pledged  by  oath  to  support  and  de- 
fend, was  not  the  only  test  of  fidelity  to  which 
these  officers  from  the  Middle  States  were  sub- 
jected. 

In  general,  the  course  adopted  by  the  adminis- 
tration was  such  as  evidenced  a  want  of  confidence 
in,  if  not  an  open  suspicion  as  to,  the  faithfulness  of 
these  officers  to  the  old  flag,  in  all  cases  where  they 
were  not  so  fortunate  as  to  have,  at  headquarters, 
intimate  friends  who  could  vouch  for  their  fidelity 
to  the  Union  and  their  readiness  to  take  the  field 
in  its  behalf. 

Here  and  there,  in  both  army  and  navy,  oppor- 
tunities came  fortuitously  to  individuals  to  demon- 
strate by  prompt  and  decisive  action  their  position 


220       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

«f» 

in  the  conflict  that  was  impending,  and  thus,  win- 
ning the  confidence  of  the  administration,  the  way 
to  "laurels"  was  opened  for  them. 

To  the  greater  number,  however,  in  both  arms  of 
the  service,  that  accident  of  birth  in  the  Middle 
States  was  a  clog  and  an  obstacle  to  all  their  efforts 
for  distinction  and  advancement, — efforts,  which 
when  simply  equaled  by  those  within  the  radial 
ring  of  the  administration  or  whose  birthplace 
chanced  to  be  north  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  Line, 
won  for  them  unstinted  applause  from  the  northern 
press  and  tangible  rewards  at  the  suggestion  of 
their  political  friends  in  Washington. 

The  naval  profession  is  one  that  naturally  tends 
to  concentrate  one's  affections  in  his  country  as  an 
entirety,  a  single  entity,  so  to  speak.  Sailing  the 
world  over  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty,  his  vessel 
bears  the  naval  officer  to  the  ports  of  foreign  coun- 
tries, where  he  flies  a  flag  that  speaks  to  him  of  his 
country  as  an  entirety.  His  one  thought  is  how 
best  to  serve  that  country  and  to  do  his  duty- 
by  her. 

I  had  learned  to  look  upon  my  duty  as  owing 
not  solely  to  the  State  of  Maryland  where  I  was 
born,  nor  to  the  State  of  Kentucky,  from  which  I 
was  appointed  to  the  naval  service,  but  to  the  whole 
United  States  as  being  one  government ;  and  to  me 
the  "  stars  and  stripes  "  represented  not  merely  one 
or  two  states,  but  the  whole  Union. 

Therefore,  in  considering  as  to  what  my  duty 
required  of  me  in  these  times  I  remembered  the 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        221 

oath  I  had  taken  on  my  entry  into  the  service,  and 
determined  to  be  faithful  to  it,  regardless  of  the 
pressure  from  friends  or  relations. 

I  could  see  nothing  but  disaster  to  the  whole 
country  in  the  event  of  a  disruption  of  the  states, 
and  did  not  hesitate  to  make  known,  and  positively, 
my  purpose  of  devoting  my  whole  service  faithfully 
to  the  maintenance  of  the  authority  of  the  general 
government. 

When  asked  by  my  brother-officers  for  my  views 
on  the  situation,  this  being  the  first  method  adopted 
in  sounding  for  our  sentiments,  I  always  took  from 
my  pocket-book  and  handed  them  for  perusal,  an 
extract  which  I  had  copied  from  a  speech  of  Henry 
Clay  delivered  in  the  United  States  Senate  chamber 
in  1850,  which  is  as  follows  : 

"  Mr.  President,  I  have  heard  with  pain  and  re- 
gret a  confirmation  of  the  remark  I  made,  that  the 
sentiment  of  disunion  is  becoming  familiar.  I  hope 
it  is  confined  to  South  Carolina.  I  do  not  regard 
as  my  duty  what  the  honorable  senator  seems  to 
regard  as  his.  If  Kentucky  to-morrow  unfurls  the 
banner  of  resistance,  I  never  fight  under  that 
banner.  I  owe  a  paramount  allegiance  to  the 
whole  Union,  a  subordinate  one  to  my  own  state." 

These  I  declared  to  be  my  own  sentiments  and 
that  sense  of  duty  would  always  guide  me. 

It  was  with  great  surprise  that  I  noted  the  apathy 
existing  in  the  Department  as  to  the  true  interests 
of  the  government  and  the  failure  to  properly 
guard  those  interests  by  a  disposition  of  our  men- 


222       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

of-war  and  stores  of  ordnance  and  provisions  to 
meet  emergencies.  As  a  subordinate  officer  I,  of 
course,  could  do  nothing  but  tender  to  those  of 
my  superiors  in  rank,  whose  fidelity  to  the  old  flag 
was  assured,  my  services  wherever  they  would  be 
deemed  of  most  use. 

In  February,  1861,  the  situation  became  so  grave 
that  the  Department  considered  it  necessary  to  send 
special  instructions  to  the  senior  officer  of  the  Gulf 
squadron ;  and,  it  being  important  to  communicate 
with  him  before  any  overt  act  on  the  part  of  the 
seceding  states,  I  was  sent  for  on  the  morning  of 
the  5th  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  who  entrusted 
me  with  secret  despatches,  which  I  was  directed  to 
bear  to  Captain  Samuel  Barron,  or  to  the  senior 
officer  of  the  vessels  off  Pensacola  as  speedily  as  I 
could  travel. 

Without  even  letting  my  wife  know  where  I  was 
going,  I  packed  my  valise  and  took  the  earliest 
train  that  evening  for  the  South,  and  on  the  8th 
of  February  reached  Montgomery,  Alabama,  and 
thence  by  a  late  train  ran  down  to  Pensacola,  reach- 
ing there  without  any  one  knowing  of  my  mission. 
After  breakfast  the  next  morning  I  called  upon  my 
old  friend  Hon.  Stephen  R.  Mallory,whom  I  had  long 
known  intimately,  and  whose  farewell  speech  upon 
leaving  his  seat  in  the  United  States  senate  showed 
that,  whilst  obeying  the  instruction  of  his  constit- 
uents, his  heart  was  with  the  old  flag.  I  asked  him 
to  accompany  me  to  General  Chase,  the  military 
commandant  of  the  place,  and  aid  me  in  obtain- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       223 

ing  a  passport,  permitting  me  to  communicate  with 
the  squadron  off  the  entrance  of  the  harbor. 

This  Mr.  Mallory  kindly  did,  but  General  Chase 
informed  us  that  Captain  Randolph,  of  the  Confed- 
erate navy,  commanding  the  Navy  Yard  at  Warren-- 
ton, had  power  to  grant  such  authority,  and  referred 
me  to  him. 

Although  it  was  blowing  a  norther  at  the  time, 
I  soon  procured  a  boat,  and  with  a  single  man  at  the 
oars,  was  a  little  over  an  hour  in  reaching  the  Navy 
Yard  wharf,  where  I  was  stopped  by  a  sentry  ;  but 
after  a  while  I  was  conducted  to  the  office  of  Captain 
Randolph,  who  promptly  accorded  the  permission 
asked. 

The  gale  was  blowing  too  hard  to  permit  of  my 
reaching  the  vessels  outside  in  the  small  boats  avail- 
able, but  I  met  the  orderly  sergeant,  who  had  come 
over  from  Fort  Pickens  under  flag  of  truce  after 
marketing,  and  I  directed  him  to  request  Lieutenant 
Slemmer  to  make  signal  for  the  steamer  "  Wyan- 
dotte  "  to  come  in  for  me. 

In  the  meantime  I  accepted  the  invitation  of  Mr. 
Gonzales,  an  old  friend  of  my  coast  survey  days,  and 
took  lodgings  at  his  house. 

About  8  a.m., on  the  loth,  the  "Wyandotte,"  Lieu- 
tenant O.  H.  Berryman  commanding,  came  in  under 
a  flag  of  truce,  and  sending  a  boat  to  the  yard  I  was 
soon  carried  on  board.  It  was  still  blowing  too  hard 
for  communication  between  vessels  outside,  but  on 
the  nth  the  "  Wyandotte"  stood  out  to  sea,  and, 
accompanied  by  Berryman,  I  went  on  board  of 


224       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-RDMIRAL. 

the  "  Macedonian  "  and  delivered  my  despatches  to 
Captain  James  Glynn,  as  senior  officer  in  the  absence 
of  Captain  Barren.  Captain  Adams  of  the  "  Sabine," 
and  Commander  C.  H.  Poor  of  the  "  St.  Louis," 
joined  us  on  the  "  Macedonian."  When  the  return 
despatches  were  prepared  I  took  charge  of  them, 
and  also  of  the  letter  bags  of  the  different  vessels, 
and  in  the  "  Wyandotte  "  soon  steamed  back  into  the 
harbor,  anchoring  off  the  wharf  at  Fort  Pickens, 
where,  with  Berryman,  I  communicated  with  Lieu- 
tenant Slemmer,  commanding  the  fort. 

On  the  1 2th,  Slemmer  had  his  despatches  ready 
for  me,  and  in  the  afternoon  we  steamed  up  to  Pen- 
sacola,  under  a  flag  of  truce,  where  I  was  landed,  and 
after  dining  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mallory,  I  left  at  10 
p.  m.,  in  the  train  for  Montgomery,  having  General 
.Chase  as  a  fellow-passenger  to  that  city.  Thence  I 
proceeded  north  by  way  of  the  Wilmington  railroad, 
entering  the  state  of  South  Carolina  in  a  train 
crowded  with  recruits  of  all  ages,  who  were  being 
gathered  at  Charleston  for  a  contemplated  attack  on 
Fort  Sumter. 

I  reached  Washington  in  safety  on  the  i6th  of 
February,  and  at  2  p.  m.  I  delivered  my  despatches 
to  the  Secretaries  of  War  and  of  the  Navy. 

Matters  moved  on  quietly  with  me  for  some  weeks 
until,  on  the  night  of  Thursday  (April  i8th),  I  re- 
ceived orders  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  through 
Commander  Emmons,  to  report  at  the  Navy  Depart- 
ment, at  10  o'clock  the  next  morning,  for  further 
orders,  which  I  did,  and  Lieutenants  Wise,  Johnston, 
and  Bennett,  there  reported  to  me  for  duty. 


FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL.   225 

That  evening  I  went  on  board  of  the  "  Pawnee," 
at  the  Navy  Yard  under  the  orders  of  Commodore 
Hiram  Paulding,  being  joined  there  by  Captain 
Wilkes,  Commanders  William  M.  Walker,  T.  A. 
Jenkins,  John  Rodgers  and  Alden,  and  Lieutenants 
Wise,  Russell,  Johnston  and  Morris.  Lieutenant 
Bennett  had  sent  in  his  resignation  that  afternoon 
and  did  not  go  with  us. 

The  "  Pawnee  "  steamed  down  the  river  and  ar- 
rived at  Old  Point  Comfort  on  Saturday,  the  2Oth 
April,  where  we  took  on  board  a  Massachusets  reg- 
iment under  the  command  of  Colonel  Wardrof,  and 
then  proceeded  to  the  Gosport  Navy  Yard,  the  ob- 
ject of  our  expedition  being  to  bring  out  the  U.  S.  S. 
"Merrimac/'  "*Germantown,"  "Plymouth,"  and 
"  Dolphin." 

Captain  Wilkes  was  to  command  the  fleet,  and  to 
take  them  to  New  York.  I  was  assigned  to  the 
command  of  the  "  Merrimac,"  Walker  to  the  "  Ger- 
mantown,"  Rodgers  to  the  "  Plymouth,"  and  Alden 
to  the  "  Dolphin." 

We  reached  the  yard  at  8  p.m.  There  we  found  the 
"  Pennsylvania  "  with  her  guns  trained  upon  us,  and 
the  "  Cumberland  "  sprung  by  her  hawsers  athwart 
the  channel  to  block  our  passage,  with  her  large 
guns  trained  on  us  in  the  belief  that  we  were  from 
Richmond,  sent  to  capture  the  Yard. 

We  promptly  answered  the  hail  from  the  "Cum- 
berland ;"  but  our  answer,  it  seems,  was  not  distinctly 
heard  on  board  that  ship,  for  we  heard  the  officer  at 
the  bow  gun  ask  his  commanding  officer,  "Shall  I 
15 


226       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

fire,  sir  ?  "  at  which  Captain  Rowan  of  our  ship  sang 
out,  "  United  States  steamer  '  Pawnee  ' !  "  whereupon, 
from  the  "Cumberland"  and  "Pennsylvania"  arose 
a  loud  exultant  shout  from  officers  and  men,  who 
heartily  welcomed  our  arrival. 

We  were  soon  boarded  by  Lieutenants  Semmesand 
Edward  D.  Donaldson,  the  latter  being  in  command 
of  the  "  Pennsylvania"  informing  us  that  the  navy 
yard  was  only  occupied  by  the  marines,  and  that  the 
officers  of  the  yard  (excepting  Commodore  Charles  S. 
McCauley,  Commander  Livingston,  who  had  only 
reported  the  day  before,  and  Lieutenants  Donald- 
son and  A.  A.  Semmes)  had  deserted  their  flag  and 
gone  over  to  the  Confederates. 

In  the  expectation  of  the  arrival* of  a  large  force 
from  Richmond  by  river  and  railroad  to  attack  the 
Yard,  the  Commodore  had  determined  to  scuttle  the 
ships,  destroy  the  shears,  and  all  arms  and  stores  on 
hand,  and  with  the  "  Cumberland  "  to  fight  their 
way  out. 

After  some  consultation  it  was  determined  by 
Commodore  Paulding  to  burn  the  ships  (which  were 
already  fast  sinking)  together  with  the  ship-houses 
and  storehouses,  and  to  blow  up  the  dry  dock. 

I  was  detailed  to  fire  the  ships  and  ship-houses, 
with  Lieutenants  Wise  and  Johnston  under  my 
orders  to  assist  me.  I  sent  them  to  burn  the  ships, 
whilst  I  landed,  to  give  my  personal  attention  to  the 
ship-houses.  Commander  Alden  was  ordered  to 
fire  the  storehouses,  and  Commander  John  Rodgers, 
with  Captain  H.  G.  Wright,  of  the  army,  were  de- 


FROM    REEFER    TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       227 

tailed  to  destroy  the  dry  dock — all  of  us,  at  first,  to 
do  all  we  could  to  damage  and  render  unserviceable 
the  1400  guns  that  were  in  the  yard — at  which  task 
we  were  engaged  all  night. 

At  daylight  or  a  little  before  the  "  Pawnee  "  was 
under  way,  with  the  "  Cumberland  "  in  tow,  when 
she  sent  up  a  rocket  as  our  signal  to  apply  the 
torch,  and  in  a  moment  everything  was  in  a  blaze 
from  the  turpentine  and  cotton  waste  which  had 
been  plentifully  distributed  and  applied  to  every 
combustible  surface. 

The  flames  from  the  ship-houses  nearly  cut  off 
my  party  from  the  boat  that  was  waiting  for  us, 
under  command  of  Captain  Wilkes,  but  I  found  on 
reaching  it  that  all  were  in,  except  John  Rodgers 
and  Captain  Wright.  The  smoke  and  flames  drove 
us  from  our  rendezvous,  and  we  were  obliged  to 
leave  those  officers  behind,  as  it  was  impossible  for 
them  to  reach  us.  Our  men  pulled  a  strong  stroke 
for  the  "  Pawnee,"  which,  with  the  "  Cumberland," 
had  passed  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth  with  tampons 
out  of  their  guns  and  the  crew  at  quarters,  ready 
to  open  fire  on  both  towns  if  a  gun  had  been  fired 
from  them. 

Our  boat  and  that  of  Lieutenant  Wise's  party  just 
astern  of  us  were  not  fired  on  as  we  passed  down, 
but  armed  men  were  stationed  upon  each  wharf, 
from  whom  we  assuredly  expected  a  shot,  for  the 
"  Pawnee  "  and  "  Cumberland  "  were  far  ahead  of 
us,  and  we  did  not  get  alongside  until  nearly  up 
with  the  bight  of  Craney  Island,  where  we  heard 


228       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

that  there  was  a  battery,  as  well  as  at  Seawall's 
Point,  which  we  had  to  pass. 

The  secret  of  their  not  opening  fire  upon  us  can 
be  reasonably  traced  to  the  reply  of  Commodore 
Paulding  to  the  flag  of  truce,  which  came  into  the 
Yard  from  General  Talliaferro,  who  sent  to  say  that 
he  would  accord  permission  for  us  to  retire  with  the 
"  Cumberland  "  and  "  Pawnee,"  if  the  Yard  and  the 
other  vessels  were  not  destroyed.  To  this  the 
Commodore  replied  that  he  would  hold  no  parley, 
and  would  make  no  conditions  ;  that  he  was  going 
when  he  was  ready,  and  if  a  gun  was  fired  from  the 
shore  he  would  open  fire  upon  both  towns  and  de- 
stroy them  ! 

We  passed  in  safety  the  obstructions  that  had 
been  placed  in  the  channel,  rounding  the  stern  of 
one  schooner  that  was  just  sinking,  having  only  a 
minute  before  been  placed  in  position  by  a  tug, 
which  was  making  its  way  back  to  Craney  Island. 

The  "  Cumberland "  had  to  anchor  and  was 
brought  out  by  the  tug  "  Yankee  "  during  the  day. 
The  vessels  burned  were  the  "  Merrimac,"  "  Plym- 
outh," "  Germantown,"  my  old  home,\.\\z  "Colum- 
bus," the  " Delaware,"  the  "  New  York"  (on  the 
stocks),  the  "  Dolphin,"  "  United  States,"  and  "  Penn- 
sylvania." The  two  last  were  not  set  on  fire,  but 
caught  from  the  flames  of  the  ship-houses,  which 
reached  them,  and  through  which  we  had  to  pull  in 
our  boats. 

The  storehouses  near  the  -gate  and  the  offices  and 
ship-house  were  burned  to  the  ground,  as  well  as 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       229 

the  marine  barracks,  which  caught  on  fire  accident- 
ally in  the  night. 

On  Monday  the  22d  we  landed  the  Massachusetts 
regiment  at  Old  Point  Comfort,  and  proceeded  up 
the  bay  for  Washington.  That  night  we  saw  that  the 
light-boat  off  Cedar  Point  was  adrift  and  on  fire,  so 
we  anchored  for  the  night,  and  the  next  day 
steamed  up  to  Washington  Navy  Yard. 

On  the  24th  I  reported  to  Commodore  Paulding, 
at  the  office  of  detail,  in  the  Navy  Department,  and 
he  was  about  to  order  me  as  executive  officer  of 
the  Washington  Navy  Yard,  when  it  was  suggested 
by  Captain  Harwood,  who  had  been  just  detailed 
for  duty  as  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  and 
Hydrography,  that  I  would  be  of  much  assistance 
to  him  in  straightening  out  the  business  of  that 
bureau,  which  had  been  left  without  a  head  by  the 
secession  of  its  former  chief  and  other  assistants. 
So  I  was  accordingly  ordered  to  report  to  him  for 
duty,  upon  which  I  entered  at  once. 

Commander  James  Alden  had  recently  reached 
home  from  the  Pacific  coast,  domestic  reasons 
compelling  him  to  come  east,  and  the  superintend- 
ent of  the  Coast  Survey,  A.  D.  Bache,  made  appli- 
cation to  the  Department  that  I  should  be  sent  to 
the  command  of  the  coast  survey  steamer  "  Active," 
and  to  take  charge  of  the  survey  of  the  western 
coast,  and  I  received  my  orders  to  that  duty  about 
the  end  of  May,  I  consenting  to  take  the  duty,  upon 
the  assurance  that  its  responsibilities  called  for 
energy  and  careful  attention  to  the  interest  of  the 


230       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

government,  and   being   urged   by   my   friends   to 
accept.* 

*  Copies  of  letters  given  to  me  as  bearing  upon  my  orders  to  this 
duty,  here  given. 

U.  S.  COAST  SURVEY  OFFICE, 

May  1 6th,  1861. 

Sir  :  *  *  *  The  importance  is  very  great  to  the  jsurvey, 
and  to  the  general  service  of  the  government  to  have  a  highly- 
qualified  and  reliable  naval  officer  in  that  position.  The  steamer 
"  Active  "  is  of  a  class  to  render  great  service  as  a  despatch  boat, 
and  is  fully  prepared  even  to  take  part  in  naval  matters,  as  was 
shown  during  the  Indian  war  in  Washington  Territory. 

There  are  surveys  on  the  Western  coast  called  for  by  military 
considerations,  and  others  specially  asked  for  by  those  interested  in 
the  growing  commerce  there,  and  by  the  wants  of  the  Lighthouse 
system,  which  require  experience  and  attention.  A  vigilant  and 
highly  intelligent  officer,  who  knows  the  practical  operations  of  the 
survey,  should  be  selected,  and  will  render  a  good  account  at  the 
end  of  the  season,  not  only  of  the  general  surveying  work,  and  of 
the  special  surveys  for  the  Lighthouse,  military,  and  commercial 
purposes,  but  will  keep  an  eye  upon  the  interests  of  the  Depart- 
ment, and  of  the  government  generally.  I  should  especially  regret 
in  these  times  to  have  to  employ  a  civilian  in  that  region,  or  an 
officer  not  full  of  experience  in  the  coast  survey,  and  consider  that 
if  an  officer  can  be  spared  for  coast  survey  service  at  all,  this  case  is 
one  in  which  he  should  be  supplied. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

HON.  SALMON  P.  CHASE,  A.  D.  BACHE, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  Supt.  U.  S.  Coast  Survey. 

COAST  SURVEY  OFFICE, 
May  21,  1861. 

Dear  Sir  :  I  beg  leave  to  bring  before  you  for  the  vacant  command 
of  the  coast  survey  steamer  "Active,"  on  the  Pacific  coast,  the  name 
of  Commander  B.  F.  Sands,  U.  S.  N.  This  excellent  officer  has 
been  attached  heretofore  to  the  coast  survey,  and  was  distinguished 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       231 

My  two  sons,  William  F.,  and  Preston,  were  given 
appointments  under  me,  the  former  that  of  acting 
master,  with  the  duty  of  executive  officer  of  the 
"Active,"  the  latter  being  appointed  hydrographic 
aid  ;  and  an  order  was  sent,  at  my  request,  to  Captain 
Gardner,  who  was  in  command  of  the  Mare  Island 
Navy  Yard,  to  give  my  new  vessel  a  battery  of 
32-pounder  guns,  and  such  an  armament  as  was  suit 
able  for  the  "Active,"  with  a  full  supply  of  small- 
arms  and  ammunition,  and  on  June  Qth  we  left  home 
for  New  York  and  took  passage  for  San  Francisco, 
via  Panama,  on  the  nth,  in  the  old  "Northern 
Light,"  commanded  by  Captain  Tinkelpaugh. 

We  reached  Aspinwall  on  the  morning  of  the 
iQth,  and  at  once  took  the  cars  for  Panama,  where 
we  embarked  on  the  steamer  "  Orizaba,"  R.  H.  Pear- 
son, captain,  and  were  soon  bound  out  to  the  west- 
ward, along  the  coast  of  Central  America. 

Reaching  Acapulco,  we  only  remained  long  enough 
to  coal  ship.  The  vessel  had  scarce  reached  her 

for  his  judgment,  zeal,  and  capacity,  which  are  so  essential  in  that 
distant  command,  where  only  general  instructions  can  be  given,  and 
that  from  time  to  time.  In  the  difficult  circumstances  of  the  country, 
great  discretion  in  the  officer  will  be  more  necessary  than  ever,  great 
promptness,  thorough  knowledge  of  his  duty  as  an  officer,  and  as  a 
surveyor.  The  position  requires  at  the  present  time  a  first-rate 
officer  like  Commander  Sands,  and  I  beg  you  to  consider  that  my 
urgency  results  entirely  from  the  anxiety  which  I  feel  that  the 
public  service  shall  be  thoroughly  and  successfully  carried  on. 
With  great  respect, 

Yours  truly, 
HON.  GIDEON  WELLES,  A.  D.  BACHE, 

Secretary  of  the  Navy.  Supt.  U.  S.  C.  S. 


232        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

moorings  when,  through  the  glasses,  we  could  see  a 
line  of  black  objects  afloat,  gradually  nearing  the 
ship,  stringing  out  toward  the  shore,  whence  they 
had  started.  As  they  drew  nearer  we  saw  that  they 
were  heads,  and  soon  the  ship  was  surrounded  by 
swimming  natives,  who  made  known  their  readiness 
to  dive  for  silver  pieces. 

A  great  rush  of  the  passengers  was  made  to  the 
ship's  side,  old  and  young,  men  and  women,  the 
youngsters  particularly  anxious  for  the  sport.  The 
dark  bodies  of  the  swimmers  were  veiled  somewhat 
by  the  dark  blue  of  the  deep  water  in  which  the 
vessel  was  moored,  but  as  a  handful  of  silver  thrown 
from  the  deck  broadcast  cleaved  the  surface  and 
sank  downward,  a  shriek  arose  from  the  lady  spec- 
tators, who,  putting  their  hands  over  their  faces, 
shrank  back  as  the  swimmers  in  all  directions 
up-ended  and  dived  down,  down,  down,  until  we 
could  not  see  them.  But  a  minute  had  not  elapsed 
before  up  they  came,  holding  aloft  the  pieces  of 
silver  which  their  skill  and  excellent  swimming  pre- 
vented from  being  lost  to  commerce ! 

So  cleverly  did  they  perform  the  feat  that  they 
reaped  quite  a  harvest,  and  the  squeamishness  of 
the  ladies  faded  before  their  curiosity  and  interest 
in  the  performance,  and  they  were  soon  lining  the 
rail  and  throwing  silver  with  the  rest. 

These  swimmers  had  no  fear  of  the  sharks,  which, 
we  were  told,  never  attacked  these  bronze-limbed 
natives  on  any  occasion. 

On   July  4th,   whilst   steaming   up   the  coast  of 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        233 

California  in  a  dense  fog,  the  steamer  went  ashore 
about  a  mile  south  of  Point  Sur.  The  passengers, 
in  all  kinds  of  light  garments,  sprang  from  their 
berths  and  crowded  to  the  deck,  where,  after  some 
difficulty,  they  were  quieted  down  and  used  trim- 
ming the  vessel,  which  was  soon  backed  off  in  safety  ; 
and,  with  bilge  pumps  going  to  keep  down  the 
water  in  the  hold,  we  steamed  on  up  the  coast,  and 
reaching  San  Francisco  at  2  p.  m.,  the  passengers 
and  baggage  were  hurriedly  landed,  and  the  water 
gaining  fast,  the  crew  cast  off  lines  and  steamed 
up  to  Mare  Island,  arriving  there  just  in  time 
to  take  the  dry-dock  and  save  the  steamer  from 
sinking. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

THE  WORK  OF  THE  "  ACTIVE " — CHECK  OF  THE 
SECESSION  MOVEMENT  AT  LOS  ANGELES — GUARD 
THE  MAGAZINE  AT  MARE  ISLAND — WAR  EXCITE- 
MENT IN  SAN  FRANCISCO — SURVEY  ON  THE 
COAST— SAIL  FOR  HOME  WITHOUT  ORDERS- 
ORDERED  TO  DUTY  PROMPTLY. 

ASSUMING  command  of  the  "Active,"  I  had  her 
fitted  at  once  with  guns,  and  with  small-arms  for 
her  crew,  Captain  Wm.  H.  Gardner,  commandant 
of  the  Navy  Yard,  affording  me  all  the  assistance 
needed. 

In  those  days  the  news  from  the  East  came  very 
slowly  to  the  Western  coast.  The  steamers,  arriv- 
ing only  three  times  a  week,  brought  out  the  bulk 
of  the  mail  in  letters  and  newspapers,  the  pony 
express  bringing  but  comparatively  few  packages  of 
mail,  because  of  the  expense  attending  communica- 
tions by  that  route.  Steamer  day  was  somewhat 
of  a  general  holiday,  and  the  signal  from  the  hill-top 
which  announced  that  the  mail-steamer  was  off  the 
entrance  sent  a  stream  of  people  down  to  the 
company's  wharf,  where  there  was  always  a  scene 
of  excitement  attending  the  landing  of  passengers, 
234 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        235 

and  eager  inquiries  were  ever  made  of  the  new 
arrivals  for  the  latest  news  from  the  States. 

For  hours  before  the  mail  was  assorted  for  deliv- 
ery, the  entrances  to  the  post-office  were  blocked 
with  an  anxious  throng,  who  patiently  attended  in 
hopes  of  letters  from  the  East. 

Papers  commanded  a  high  price,  for  the  sake  of 
the  possible  war  news  in  them. 

Rumors  of  all  kinds  were  rife  as  to  the  attempts  of 
Southern  sympathizers  on  that  coast  to  get  a  foot- 
hold at  some  point  that  would  embarrass  the  general 
government.  At  one  time  it  was  said  that  the 
magazine  at  Mare  Island  was  to  be  seized  in  the 
night-time  by  a  band  of  Secessionists,  who  had  held 
meetings  for  that  purpose,  and  to  meet  any  such 
attempt  the  "Active  "  was  anchored  off  the  lower 
end  of  the  island,  where  her  guns  could  command 
every  approach  to  the  magazine,  and  the  crew  were 
constantly  drilled  and  exercised  at  great-guns  and 
small-arms  and  soon  were  in  a  high  state  of 
efficiency. 

In  August  it  was  reported  that  there  was  a  plot 
on  foot  to  annex  Lower  California  to  the  Southern 
Confederacy,  and  General  E.  V.  Sumner,  in  com- 
mand of  the  Department,  having  made  a  requisition 
for  the  services  of  the  "  Active,"  I  steamed  down 
abreast  the  Presidio,  and,  sending  my  boats,  took 
on  board  a  body  of  troops  under  Major  Ketcham, 
and  carried  them  three  hundred  miles  down  the 
coast  to  San  Pedro,  where  they  landed  and  marched 
to  Los  Angeles,  the  point  of  the  threatened  attempt 


236       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

in  support  of  the  Confederacy,  it  being  rumored  that 
at  that  place  Major  Van  Dorn,  of  the  Texas  forces, 
would  co-operate  with  General  Johnston,  who  had 
been  Sumner's  predecessor  in  command  of  this 
military  department,  in  the  effort  to  acquire  a  sea- 
port on  the  Pacific. 

We  had  Mr.  Banning  as  a  passenger  with  us — 
a  whole-souled  generous  man  of  jovial  disposition 
with  all  that  frank  bonhomie  that  characterizes  the 
successful  men  of  this  land  of  plenty.  He  had  be- 
come anxious  about  his  large  interests  in  vineyards 
near  Los  Angeles,  and  we  were  glad  to  have  him  as 
a  guest. 

What  excitement  there  was  throughout  the  coast 
as  the  express  brought  news  of  the  successive  early 
fights  of  the  war.  Every  skirmish  was  magnified, 
and  filled  us  with  anxiety  about  our  friends  and  rela- 
tives who,  we  knew,  were  in  the  army  of  the  Potomac. 

Ball's  Bluff  with  its  reverse  to  our  arms  sent  a 
thrill  of  excitement  through  the  city  that  wrought 
the  community  up  to  the  fever  point  of  anxiety 
about  the  welfare  of  the  country. 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  reading  public 
began  to  suspect  the  newspapers  of  working  on  the 
public  feelings  for  their  own  gain.  There  were  too 
frequent  recurrences  in  reports,  of  battles  in  different 
sections,  east  and  west,  to  which  denials  were  pub- 
lished on  the  succeeding  days  ;  so  that  finally  a  sen- 
timent prevailed,  which  was  very  comforting,  that 
no  reported  battle  was  as  disastrous  as  it  was  at  first 
described  to  be. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        237 

This  was  a  great  preventive  of  panics,  yet  the 
news  of  such  battles  as  that  of  Manassas  made  all 
lovers  of  the  Union  on  the  Western  coast  anxious, 
but  more  determined  in  their  devotion  to  the  old  flag. 
The  September  elections  were  full  of  excitement, 
but  the  bearing  of  the  Unionists  was  such  that  the 
Secession  sympathizers  kept  out  of  sight.  The  Re- 
publicans carried  the  state,  and  soon  tranquillity  pre- 
vailed, and  I  took  advantage  of  this  to  run  up  the 
coast  to  Tomales  Bay,  where,  with  the  "  Active  "  my 
party  made  a  thorough  survey  of  the  hydrography 
of  the  bay  and  its  approaches  and  then  returned  to 
San  Francisco. 

I  received  a  letter  of  thanks  from  the  general 
commanding  for  the  valuable  assistance  I  had  ren- 
dered to  him  in  his  movement  of  troops  to  Los  An- 
geles, the  show  of  force  so  promptly  made  there 
serving  effectually  to  end  the  hopes  of  the  Confeder- 
ates in  that  direction,  and  in  December  I  received  a 
kind  acknowledgment  of  my  services  from  Com- 
modore Gardner.  * 

*(Copy.)  COMMANDANT'S  OFFICE, 

Navy  Yard,  Mare  Island, 

Dec.  13,  1861. 

Sir:  I  have  great  pleasure  in  sending  you  copies  of  all  the  cor- 
respondence which  transpired  between  Genl.  Ed.  Sumner  and  my- 
self upon  the  employment  of  the  U.  S.  Str.  "Active"  under  your 
command;  and  at  the  same  time  in  expressing  my  own  opinion  of 
the  great  usefulness  of  the  "  Active"  in  remaining  anchored  off  the 
Powder  Magazine  at  Mare  Island  (to  guard  it),  and  in  other  ways  as- 
sisting in  the  transportation  of  troops  at  the  request  of  General 
Sumner. 
This  service  in  the  transportation  of  troops  to  a  point  where  the 


238       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

The  news  of  the  capture  of  Port  Royal  by  the 
fleet  under  Admiral  Dupont  filled  us  all  with  delight ; 
but  as  the  opportunities  for  distinction  increased  on 
the  Atlantic  coast  and  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  I  be- 
came restless,  so  far  away  from  the  scene  of  active 
operations  and  looked  with  eagerness  for  the  day 
when  I  could  go  East  and  make  useful  to  the  govern- 
ment my  thorough  knowledge  of  the  coast  on  the 
Atlantic  and  in  the  Gulf, obtained  in  the  long  years  de- 
voted to  the  close  survey  of  the  whole  southern  coast. 

In  the  meantime,  as  I  felt  that  I  could  give  the 
time,  I  had  my  parties  out  surveying  in  the  ship's 
boats,  in  San  Pablo  Bay  and  Carquinez  straits,  which 
were  all  thoroughly  sounded  and  worked  up. 

I  had  the  schooner  "  Marcy "  fitted  out  and 
manned  from  the  "  Active,"  and  she*  was  ready  to  sail 
North  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  survey  of  Gray's 
Harbor,  when  the  loss  of  my  son  William,  who  was 
to  have  commanded  the  party,  caused  me  to  forego 
that  expedition.  And  the  "  Active  "  becoming  unfit 
for  service  through  defective  woodwork,  I  was  di- 
rected to  sell  her,  which  I  did,  and  transferred  my 
officers  and  the  best  of  my  crew  to  the  schooner 
"  Marcy,"  in  which  I  made  a  trip  up  the  coast  to 

country  was  threatened  with  rebellion  was  a  great  saving  of  time 
and  money. 

For  these  very  important  services  be  pleased  to  accept  the 
thanks  of 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

WM.  H.  GARDNER, 

COMDR.  B.  F.  SANDS,  U.  S.  Navy,  Commandant. 

Comdg.  U.  S.  Str.  Active,  San  Francisco. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       239 

Bodega  Head,  north  of  Tomales  Bay,  the  survey  of 
which  was  completed,  and  then  I  returned  to  my 
anchorage  off  Mission  Bay  near  the  foot  of  Second 
Street. 

During  these  months  it  was  a  sore  trial  to  me  to 
see  from  time  to  time  reports  of  the  effective  work 
of  my  old  classmates  and  shipmates,  in  service  along 
the  Atlantic  seaboard.  The  capture  of  Fort  Hat- 
teras  by  Flag  Officer  L.  M.  Goldsborough  in  January, 
1862  ;  Rowan's  work  at  Roanoke  Island  in  the  Sounds 
of  North  Carolina,  followed  in  March  by  the  engage- 
ments of  the  "  Merrimac  "  with  our  vessels  in  Hamp- 
ton Road  and  off  Newport  News, — all  made  me  eager 
to  participate  in  more  stirring  affairs  than  were  now 
open  to  me  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  I  made  frequent 
applications  to  be  relieved,  but  Professor  Bache 
seemed  loath  to  part  with  my  services  where  I  was. 

The  success  that  followed  the  bold  attempt  of 
Admiral  Farragut  to  pass  the  Forts  Jackson  and 
Philippi,  which  resulted  in  the  destruction  of  the 
rebel  flotilla  and  ironclad,  and  in  the  capture  of 
New  Orleans,  giving  honor  and  glory  to  those  who 
participated  in  those  terrific  fights  added  to  the 
envy  I  entertained  regarding  the  opportunities  for 
distinction,  so  happily  theirs,  and  I  longed  more  to 
be  with  them. 

August  came  and  I  was  still  on  the  Pacific  coast. 
There  was  no  prospect  that  I  could  see  of  an  early 
termination  of  the  war.  The  movements  of  our 
armies  along  the  Potomac  and  in  the  west,  with  the 
ever  increasing  record  of  battles  and  the  wonderful 


240       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

growth  of  our  improvised  navy,  with  the  engage- 
ments of  our  vessels  on  the  Atlantic  and  Gulf  coasts 
and  on  the  inland  waters,  when  assisting  the  move- 
ments of  our  armies,  assured  me  that  the  work  of 
the  navy  was  very  far  from  being  ended  ;  and  wearied 
at  last  with  my  enforced  idleness  I  concluded  not  to 
wait  for  orders,  believing  that,  when  my  motive  in 
leaving  my  post  was  known  at  the  Department,  my 
course  would  not  be  censured,  but  that  my  deter- 
mination not  to  be  left  out  of  the  way  when  laurels 
were  to  be  won  would  be  appreciated.  So  in  October, 
1862,  I  telegraphed  that  I  would  sail  by  steamer  for 
home,  and  with  my  son  Preston  took  passage  on  the 
"  Golden  Gate,"  reaching  Washington  after  an 
uneventful  passage,  and  on  the  day  following 
reported  for  duty  at  the  Department,  requesting 
orders  to  a  fighting  vessel.  To  my  great  gratifica- 
tion I  was  informed  that  orders  detaching  me  from 
the  Pacific  work  had  been  sent  upon  the  receipt  of 
my  telegram  ;  and  so  my  action  was  approved,  and 
on  igth  November  I  received  orders  to  the  sloop 
of  war  "  Dacotah,"  then  refitting  at  the  Brooklyn 
Navy  Yard,  and  within  a  fortnight  after  my  return 
east  I  was  afloat  again  and,  sailing  as  convoy  to  the 
ironclad  monitor  "  Passaic,"  soon  joined  the  North 
Atlantic  Blockading  squadron  under  the  command 
of  my  old  friend  S.  P.  Lee,  now  acting  rear  admiral. 
By  him  I  was  ordered  to  sail  for  Cape  Fear  River, 
and  as  senior  officer  to  take  command  of  the  division 
of  the  fleet  blockading  that  river,  and  I  relieved 
Captain  G.  H.  Scott  at  the  Western  Bar  entrance. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE  WILMINGTON,  N.  C.,  BLOCKADE— OUTLINE  OF 
WORK  CUT  OUT  FOR  THE  NAVY  DURING  THE 
WAR— THE  ONEROUS  AND  VALUABLE  WORK  OF 
THE  BLOCKADE — THE  MERIT  OF  THOSE  DOING 
THAT  DUTY — CHARACTER  OF  THE  WORK — SUC- 
CESSFUL BLOCKADE — INCIDENTS  OF  THE  SERVICE 
—CAPTURE  OF  "  BLOCKADE  RUNNERS  " — ESCAPE 
OF  THE  "  TALLAHASSEE  " — ATTACK  ON  "  FORT 
CASWELL  " — THE  REBEL  RAM — DESTRUCTION 
OF  REBEL  SALT  WORKS  AT  MASONBORO  INLET- 
LITTLE  "  FORT  JACKSON  "  CARTER — INCIDENTS 
DURING  MY  COMMAND  OF  THAT  DIVISION  OF 
THE  BLOCKADE. 

THE  condition  of  our  navy  at  the  beginning  of 
the  war  considered  with  reference  to  the  vast  work 
which  fell  to  it  in  the  task  of  suppressing  the  rebel- 
lion speaks  the  hopefulness  and  determination  of 
those  entrusted  with  the  naval  administration.  It 
should  stand  as  the  strongest  evidence  of  the  con- 
fidence reposed  in  the  valor,  zeal  and  abilities  of  the 
officers  and  men  of  the  navy  who  remained  true  to 
the  Union,  as  being  deemed  sufficient  to  begin  the 
blockade  of  the  extensive  coast  line  from  the  capes 

of  the  Chesapeake,  on  the  Atlantic,  to  the  Mexican 
16  241 


242       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

boundary  on  the  west  coast  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  to  train  to  efficiency,  for  the 
purposes  of  the  war,  the  brave  and  patriotic  seamen, 
who,  from  the  merchant  marine,  tendered  their 
services  to  the  government  in  this  emergency  ;  and 
who,  as  the  volunteer  naval  officers,  filled  so  credit- 
ably and  with  such  effectiveness  the  positions  as- 
signed them,  and  won  the  gratitude  of  the  country 
by  their  devotion  to  their  duty  which  was  so  well 
performed. 

A  glance  at  the  navy  registers  of  1861  and  1865 
suffices  to  show  the  astonishing  growth  of  the  naval 
force  during  the  war,  both  in  number  of  officers  and 
men  and  in  the  number  of  vessels  purchased,  armed 
and  put  in  service  upon  the  varied  duties  of  the 
navy. 

The  records  show  that  o>v^  five  thousand  volunteer 
officers  of  all  grades  were  appointed  during  those 
four  years,  and  the  number  of  seamen  was  increased 
from  7500  in  1861  to  51,560  in  1865.  Over  300 
steamers  and  160  sailing  vessels  were  purchased  for 
the  service  on  the  sea-coast  and  upon  the  inland 
waters. 

Some  of  these  vessels  so  taken  into  the  public 
service,  and  dignified  as  "  United  States  men-of-war" 
were  evidently  purchased  when  a  pressing  neces- 
sity required  it.  As  indicative  of  the  nondescript 
character  of  some  of  them  an  amusing  story  is  told 
of  one,  to  the  command  of  which  Lieutenant  Joseph 
P.  Fyffe,  was  appointed  which  se  non  e  vero,  e  ben 
trovato. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        243 

This  craft  had  been  known  as  the  "  Clara  Dolson," 
and  was  one  of  those  huge  flat-bottomed  side- 
wheelers  navigating  the  western  waters. 

Owing  to  some  confusion  in  communicating  the 
names  of  vessels  by  signal,  so  many  of  them  being 
constantly  on  the  move  up  and  down  the  river,  the 
squadron  commander  issued  a  general  order,  direct- 
ing that,  to  avoid  the  necessity  of  announcing  the 
vessel  by  her  signals,  the  name  of  every  "  vmn-of- 
war  "  should  be  painted  upon  her  sides  in  large  let- 
ters, that  might  be  plainly  read  at  a  distance.  Fyffe, 
thinking  that  to  call  the  craft  under  his  command 
"a  United  States  man-of-war "  was  an  absurdity, 
complied  with  the  order  in  his  own  inimitable 
fashion,  and  electrified  the  whole  fleet  by  steaming 
through  it  with  the  name  "  PREPOSTEROUS," 
upon  one  paddle-box  and  the  name  "  OUTRA- 
GEOUS "  upon  the  other  in  large  letters,  causing 
shouts  of  laughter  to  arise  on  every  side. 

He  was  not  court-martialed  for  disrespect,  the 
joke  being  so  good  ;  but  a  quiet  hint  was  given  and 
taken  to  secure  the  removal  of  the  criticism  upon  the 
order. 

Of  course  for  the  purpose  of  battle,  whether  with 
the  enemy's  forts  or  with  other  armed  vessels,  the 
regular  men-of-war  were  comparatively  few  in  num- 
ber ;  but  the  history  of  the  war  tells  us  that,  such 
as  they  were,  the  fighting  vessels  of  the  navy  were  so 
distributed,  as  the  different  important  naval  battles 
were  mapped  out,  as  to  suffice  amply,  under  their  able 
officers,  for  the  accomplishment  of  the  objects  aimed 


244   FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL. 

at,  and  to  win  for  those  attached  to  them  an  abun- 
dance of  laurels  for  brilliant  victories  obtained  and 
zealous,  efficient  service  performed. 

These  victories,  because  of  their  importance,  and 
because  of  their  being  so  well  timed,  concentrated 
and  absorbed  all  the  congratulations  and  rewards 
that  were  bestowed  by  the  country  upon  the  navy 
for  duty  well  done. 

It  has  always  seemed  to  me  that  the  proper  meed 
of  praise  and  the  full  reward  merited,  were  not  given 
to  those  whose  days  and  nights  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end  of  the  war  were  spent  upon  blockade 
service,  guarding  with  unceasing  vigilance  the 
countless  inlets  and  ports  upon  that  whole  coast 
and  so  effectively  maintaining  the  blockade  in  spite 
of  all  obstacles, — 'braving  the  dangers  of  a  lee  shore 
even  in  the  severest  gales  and  keeping  their  vessels 
close  to  the  most  treacherous  shoals  and  bars,  no 
matter  what  the  season,  or  how  bad  the  weather. 

They  were  ready  at  all  times  to  protect  their 
lines  of  blockade  against  the  approach  of  armed 
vessels  from  within  or  without  the  rebel  ports,  as 
was  several  times  attempted  at  our  station  ;  and, 
although  conscious  that  a  great  number  of  their 
vessels  were  scarce  fitted  for  going  under  fire,  they 
often  braved  it  and  still  kept  steadfast  to  their  duty, 
which  was  so  trying  and  so  wearing,  knowing  that 
upon  their  fidelity  to  that  duty  and  upon  their 
success  therein  largely  depended  the  ultimate 
success  of  our  armies,  and  that  they  added  to  the 
value  of  the  victories  won. 


FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.       245 

They  knew  that  the  failure  of  the  blockade  would 
open  the  southern  ports  to  all  the  supplies  in  pro- 
visions and  war-materials  that  the  rebel  force  would 
need,  and  so'  render  the  task  of  overcoming  them 
one  of  greater  difficulty. 

To  these  workers  and  toilers,  so  patient  and  per- 
sistent in  their  laborious  service,  I  have  longed 
to  see  fitting  tribute  given  by  some  faithful  and 
able  historian  of  that  blockade  service,  the  field  for 
interesting  narrative  being  so  rich  in  instructive 
and  entertaining  incident,  and  I  regret  that  I  have 
not  seen  it  in  my  day. 

Fidelity  to  the  promised  limits  of  my  story  will 
not  permit  me  to  give  more  than  a  few  sketches  of 
what  came  under  my  own  observation,  and  I  must 
confine  myself  to  the  scene  of  my  labors. 

I  was  ordered  by  Admiral  Lee  to  proceed  with 
the  "  Dacotah  "  to  Cape  Fear  River,  and  as  senior 
officer,  to  assume  the  immediate  management  of  the 
blockade  there,  and  carry  out  his  plans.  Upon  that 
duty,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  brief  intervals, 
I  was  engaged  until  the  capture  of  Fort  Fisher, 
after  which  I  was  assigned  to  the  command  of  the 
Second  Division  of  the  West  Gulf  squadron. 

At  first,  the  blockading  force  was  quite  small, 
there  being  at  the  beginning  of  my  work  there  not 
more  than  eight  or  ten  vessels  on  the  station  at 
both  Inlets,  and  none  of  them  possessed  any 
speed,  such  as  would  give  hopes  of  successful  chase 
when  the  swift  blockade  runners  were  sighted. 

Constant  appeals  to  the  Department,  with  demon- 


246       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

strations  of  the  necessity  for  the  presence  there  of 
an  increased  number  of  better  and  faster  vessels, 
did  bring  to  us  after  awhile  a  number  of  converted 
merchant  steamers,  with  whose  aid,  great  and  valu- 
able results  were  attained.  Some  forty  odd  gunboats 
were  at  different  times  added  to  the  division  under 
my  command,  and  our  record  of  success  on  that 
blockade  alone,  shows  a  list  of  over  thirty  steamers, 
twenty-two  schooners  and  one  brig  captured  and 
sent  into  port  for  condemnation ;  and  a  large 
number  of  swift  and  costly  steamers,  with  their 
valuable  cargoes  were  run  ashore  and  destroyed  by 
our  shot  and  shell,  whilst  for  all  the  fleets  the  cap- 
tures made  exceeded  in  number  1000  vessels  of  all 
kinds,  and  254  were  sunk  or  destroyed. 

To  our  great  chagrin,  many  vessels  both  inward 
and  outward  bound,  eluded  our  vigilance  ;  for  there 
were  inlets  and  river  entrances  all  along  the  coast, 
and  there  was  great  rivalry  in  shrewdness,  in  skill 
and  in  daring  between  the  blockaders  and  the  run- 
ners of  the  blockade, — the  one  seeking  to  force  the 
passage  to  the  river,  the  other  to  seal  it  hermetically. 

Early  in  December,  1862,  I  ordered  soundings  to 
be  made  at  night,  by  boat,  of  the  channels  at  the 
entrances  of  the  river,  the  boats  doing  it  thoroughly 
and  well,  working  so  close  to  the  shore  that  the 
conversations  of  men  at  Fort  Caswell  could  be 
distinctly  heard.  With  the  knowledge  thus  gained, 
we  were  well  prepared  even  for  the  capture  of  the 
entrance  fortifications,  which  would  then  have  been 
made  had  the  wishes  and  plans  of  Admiral  Lee 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       247 

been  carried  out ;  and  as  it  was,  we  could  distribute 
our  vessels  at  night  so  as  to  cover  every  channel 
entrance,  sending  in  picket-boats  well  inside  of 
them  to  give  timely  notice  of  any  attempts  to 
escape  from  within. 

Great  watchfulness  was  kept  up  on  every  side  of 
each  vessel,  and  yet  we  would  occasionally  find,  as 
at  dawn  we  steamed  back  to  the  day  station,  that 
some  long,  low  steamer,  painted  in  pale  lead-color 
so  as  to  make  her  practically  invisible  on  a  hazy 
night  at  a  distance  of  a  hundred  yards,  had  slipped 
in  between  our  lines  and  carried  aid  and  comfort  to 
those  within. 

Of  course  language  would  fail  to  express  our 
sentiments  on  such  occasions. 

As  faster  vessels  were  sent  down  we  were  able  to 
improve  our  system,  however,  with  corresponding 
increase  in  the  number  of  captures.  In  addition  to 
the  former  inside  line  of  blockaders  with  picket- 
boats,  my  plan  (suggested  at  an  early  date  in  my 
service  there)  was  carried  out,  of  having  an  outside, 
or  off-shore,  line  of  swift  steamers  so  stationed  as 
to  course  at  a  distance  from  the  cape  as  to  make  it 
probable  that  any  vessel  escaping  at  high  tide  over 
the  bar  would  be  within  sight  of  some  one  of  our 
vessels  at  the  dawn  of  the  morning. 

This  system,  with  the  captures  that  followed, 
brought  consolation  and  some  reward  to  us,  and 
enlivened  the  tedium  of  our  duty,  which  was  further 
varied  by  stirring  incidents  that  opportunity  gave 
rise  to. 


248       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

On  February  3,  1863,  seeing  a  large  steamer  near 
Fort  Caswell  at  daylight,  I  signaled  the  "  Monti- 
cello,"  commanded  by  D.  L.  Braine,  who  was  one 
of  the  most  efficient  officers  on  that  service,  to 
steam  in  and  try  his  rifle-gun  on  her,  I  following 
him  quickly  with  the  "  Dacotah,"  hoping  to  destroy 
the  "  runner."  We  were  soon  under  a  hot  fire,  and 
the  steamer  hastened  up  stream  out  of  gunshot. 
The  rebel  Whitworth  gun  sent  its  shells  far  over  us. 
Seeing  that  nothing  could  be  accomplished,  we, 
after  two  or  three  hours'  exchange  of  compliments 
with  Fort  Caswell  and  the  batteries  at  Bald  Head, 
returned  to  our  day  station,  where  Captain  Braine 
reported  that  a  Whitworth  shell  having  struck  a 
brass  pendulum  upon  the  deck-house  of  his  vessel,  a 
flying  fragment  had  cut  the  throat  of  a  master's 
mate,  mortally  wounding  him,  but  that  his  vessel 
was  not  injured. 

After  a  year  of  service  in  command  of  the  "  Da- 
cotah," I  found  that  there  was  little  chance  of  battle 
service  on  that  station,  and  welcomed  the  orders 
given  in  December,  1863,  to  command  the  U.  S.  S. 
"  Fort  Jackson,"  a  large,  swift,  ocean  steamer,  with 
a  battery  of  nine-inch  Dahlgren  smooth-bore  guns 
and  one  loo-pounder  Parrott  in  pivot  forward,  and  I 
was  soon  back  at  my  station,  where,  seeing  that  all 
was  working  smoothly  at  the  Western  Bar,  I  went 
to  the  New  Inlet  entrance  and  gave  personal  atten- 
tion to  the  service  there. 

Learning  from  refugees  that  back  of  Masonboro 
Inlet,  seven  miles  from  Wilmington,  there  were  the 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        249 

extensive  state  salt  works,  which  were  the  main 
reliance  of  that  portion  of  the  Confederacy  for 
meat-packing,  I  resolved  upon  their  destruction,  and 
organized  in  April,  1863,  an  expedition,  sending  in 
boats  from  the  "  Fort  Jackson,"  "  Niphon "  and 
"  Howquah,"  with  a  force  of  sixty  men  under  vol- 
unteer Lieutenant  Breck,  of  the  "  Niphon,"  and 
Acting  Master  W.  E.  Dennisori,  of  my  vessel,  Sur- 
geon Philip  S.  Wales  (afterwards  Surgeon-General 
of  the  Navy),  going  along  to  attend  to  the  wounded 
if  there  should  be  any. 

The  boats  started  in  on  the  evening  of  April  21, 
1864,  and  crossing  the  breakers  of  the  bar  in  safety, 
reached  the  mainland  about  9  o'clock.  There,  with- 
out being  discovered,  the  expedition  surrounded  the 
salt  works  and  captured  the  whole  force  there — 
about  1 60  men,  mostly  conscripts — and  soon  totally 
demolished  the  whole  plant,  consisting  of  steam 
pumps  and  wind-mill,  seven  large  boilers,  200  salt- 
pans, vats  and  reservoirs, — the  thirty-pound  shells 
thrown  into  the  furnaces  blowing  them  to  fragments. 
Some  sixty  government  wagons  were  also  destroyed. 

Hearing  that  a  large  force  of  the  enemy  were 
moving  upon  them,  our  force  withdrew  to  the 
beach,  having  accomplished  their  mission.  Breck 
took  his  prisoners  with  him,  and  brought  off  all 
his  boats  would  carry — some  sixty  of  them — who 
were  taken  on  board  of  the  commodious  "  Fort 
Jackson."  One  of  the  prisoners  had  his  wife  with 
him — a  tidy,  good-looking  young  woman,  about 
nineteen  years  of  age — the  couple  having  only  been 


250       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

married  about  eight  months,  and  begging  that 
they  should  not  be  separated.  When  the  crew  of 
the  "  Fort  Jackson "  found  that  these  conscripts 
had  no  love  for  the  Confederacy,  they  made  them 
comfortable,  the  young  couple  being  given  the 
boatswain's  quarters,  and  they  were  liberally  sup- 
plied by  the  men.  * 

An  amusing  incident,  indicative  of  "  Jack  Tar's  " 
liberality,  was  the  finale  of  this  expedition.  It 
seemed  that  the  sailors  learned  that  this  couple 
(Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carter)  were  absolutely  without 
means,  having  but  the  garments  they  wore  when 
hurried  to  the  boats  by  their  captors.  Their  sailor 
hearts  warmed  with  sympathy  for  the  young  wife 
in  her  condition,  and  rinding  out  that  they  were  to 
be  set  ashore  at  Norfolk  to  begin  life  afresh,  they 

*  Forwarded  May  6th,  1864. 

(Sig.)        S.  P.  LEE,  A.  R.  Admiral. 

NAVY  DEPARTMENT. 
May  2,  1864. 

Sir :  The  Department  has  had  forwarded  to  it  by  Acting  Rear- 
Admiral  Lee,  your  report  of  the  22d  ulto.  and  other  papers  in  refer- 
ence to  the  expedition  recently  engaged  in  the  destruction  of  the 
valuable  and  extensive  saltworks  in  the  vicinity  or  at  Masonboro, 
N.  C. 

I  desire  to  return  to  you  the  thanks  of  the  Department  for  your 
complete  organization  of  the  expedition,  which  was  executed  with 
like  skill  and  attended  with  such  important  results. 
Very  respectfully,  etc., 

(Sig.)        GIDEON  WELLES, 
Captain  B.  F.  SANDS, 

Comdg.  U.  S.  Str.  "  Fort  Jackson,"       Secretary  of  the  Navy. 
Off  Wilmington,  N.  C. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       251 

quietly  made  up  a  purse  in  the  forecastle  and  just 
before  the  conscripts  were  to  be  landed  the  boat- 
swain's mate,  a  rough  old  salt,  came  forward,  the 
crew  following  closely  behind  him,  and,  handing  in 
their  name  a  purse  of  $260  to  the  young  wife, 
said  that  they  all  hoped  it  would  suffice  to  start 
them  well  on  the  way  to  comfort. 

She  was  a  modest  little  woman  and  seemed  some- 
what at  a  loss  to  express  her  feelings  ;  but,  at  last, 
with  tears  of  gratitude  in  her  eyes,  she  shook  the  old 
tar's  hand  and  hesitatingly  said  that  her  heart  was 
full  of  her  thanks  and  appreciation  of  all  their  kind- 
ness to  her,  but  that  she  could  think  of  no  way  to 
show  it,  except  (in  what  we  thought  a  comprehensive 
and  novel  way)  by  naming  her  expected  boy  (?)  "  Fort 
Jackson  "  Carter  !  This,  as  she  could  not  give  him 
all  the  Christian  names  of  the  crew,  the  men  thought 
altogether  a  lovely  compliment  and  sufficient  token 
of  her  thanks,  and  they  gave  her  three  hearty  cheers, 
as  she  blushingly  went  over  the  side. 

In  order  to  enable  the  vessels  blockading  to  know 
each  other,  a  system  of  night  signals  by  flash-lights 
and  colored  lanterns  was  devised,  by  means  of  which 
it  was  expected  that  the  identity  of  friends  and  foes 
could  be  established  when  vessels  met  after  dark. 
The  plan  was  a  good  one,  but  dependent  always 
for  its  success  upon  the  alertness,  the  promptness, 
and  the  intelligence  of  the  officers  on  deck  when  the 
occasion  for  their  use  arose,  and  want  of  such  readi- 
ness and  occasional  stupidity  now  and  then  caused 
us  great  annoyance. 


252       FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

One  instance  I  may  mention.  It  was  in  October, 
1864,  that  the  famous  Confederate  steamer  "Talla- 
hassee "  made  her  escape  from  New  Inlet.  The 
fleet  were  apprised  of  the  fact  by  shot  and  rockets 
from  the  U.  S.  "  Dumbarton,"  and  I  joined  in  the 
chase  with  all  speed,  steaming  in  the  direction  indi- 
cated by  the  signal.  The  "  Fort  Jackson"  being  the 
fastest  vessel  there  I  had  strong  hopes  of  capturing 
the  fugitive,  when  from  a  vessel,  also  in  chase, 
which  proved  to  be  the  gunboat  "  Aries,"  a  challenge 
was  made  and  promptly  answered  by  our  lanterns. 
We  kept  on,  when  our  neighbor  opened  fire  upon 
us,  sending  two  shells  aboard,  one  of  which  penetrat- 
ing the  side  just  above  the  waterline  near  the  fore- 
chains,  exploding  in  the  paymaster's  storeroom,  and 
an  alarm  of  fire  in  the  forehold  necessitated  our 
stopping;  so  we  hailed  the  "Aries,"  and  gave  up  the 
chase,  which,  being  continued  by  the  "  Dumbarton  " 
alone,  the  "Tallahassee"  succeeded  in  reaching  a 
neutral  port  in  safety. 

The  "  Boston,"  the  "  Thistle"  and  the  "  Wando," 
or  "  Let  Her  Rip,"  were  the  most  valuable  prizes 
of  the  "  Fort  Jackson."  The  chase  of  the  last- 
named  was  most  exciting  and  interesting.  She 
had  crossed  the  bar  about  9  p.m.  one  evening  in  that 
same  October,  and  we,  sighting  her  shadowy  out- 
lines, were  quickly  in  pursuit,  but  soon  lost  sight  of 
her  in  the  darkness.  Believing  that  she  would  go 
to  Bermuda,  we  steamed  out  to  sea  on  that  course 
all  night  at  high  speed,  and  at  day  dawn,  there  she 
was  just  abeam,  and  we  made  for  her,  the  old  <c  Fort 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       253 

Jackson"  doing  her  best,  and  we  gradually  over- 
hauled her.  The  chase  several  times  changed  her 
course  in  hopes  of  escaping  us,  and  trusting  to  the 
chances  that  often  occur  in  a  stern  chase  which  is 
so  proverbially  long,  her  captain  held  out  long  after 
the  shot  from  our  Parrott-gun  had  his  range,  and  he 
hoisted  the  English  flag,  thinking  we  might  not  fire 
at  it.  But  our  shells  went  after  him  as  fast  as  we 
could  load  and  fire,  and  it  was  not  until  over  ninety- 
eight  shells  had  been  expended  that,  finding  our  aim 
growing  steadily  more  accurate  and  the  shell  burst- 
ing over  his  deck,  he  hauled  down  the  English  flag 
and  threw  it  overboard,  surrendering  with  his  cargo 
of  550  bales  of  cotton. 

Her  captain  and  his  passengers  bore  testimony 
(which  is  on  file  in  the  Department)  to  the  efficiency 
of  our  blockade,  saying  that  in  Wilmington  they 
abused  us  roundly  for  the  zeal  and  energy  we  dis- 
played, which  made  blockade-running  so  very 
dangerous. 

Now  and  then  one  of  those  long,  low,  swift-steam- 
ing, Clyde-built  vessels  (like  the  "  Giraffe  ")  would 
lead  four  or  five  of  our  best  vessels  on  exciting 
chases ;  and  its  exceeding  great  speed  would  enable 
her  daring  captain  to  run  the  gauntlet  in  safety, 
until  the  falling  of  the  night  shut  him  entirely  from 
sight,  and  he  would  escape. 

So  bold  and  daring  were  some  of  these  captains 
that  I  have  known  them  when  bound  in,  after  the 
narrowest  escapes  from  capture  by  our  blockaders, 
which  strove  to  drive  them  back  to  sea,  to  turn  at 


254       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  first  chance  and  finally  slip  through  our  lines  in 
plain  sight,  taking  all  the  shot  we  could  send,  and 
reach  port  in  safety. 

Once  the  impact  of  the  shell  striking  the  flying 
blockade-runner  was  distinctly  heard,  followed  by 
the  agonizing  shrieks  of  the  wounded  ;  but  the  speed 
of  the  vessel  and  the  daring  of  her  captain  carried 
her  through  in  safety,  leaving  us  to  lament  that  those 
who  had  the  purchasing  of  our  improvised  block- 
aders  could  not  see  the  propriety  of  securing  vessels 
of  greater  speed. 

From  Little  River  Inlet  up  to  Lockwood's  Folly, 
above  Fort  Fisher,  the  beach  was  lined  with  the 
wrecks  of  steamers  run  ashore  by  our  blockaders, 
and  burned  or  shattered  by  our  shot  and  shell.  The 
"  Hebe,"  the  "  Arabian,"  the  "  Elizabeth,"  the 
"  Venus,"  the  "  Phantom,"  the  "  Douro,"  being  a 
few  whose  names  I  now  remember,  whose  captains 
carried  them  along  almost  on  the  crest  of  the  surf, 
so  well  did  they  know  the  coast. 

Our  blockade  became  so  close  that  the  rebels  had 
iron-clads  constructed,  which  now  and  then  steamed 
out  at  nightfall  to  drive  off  our  vessels,  hoping  thus 
to  facilitate  the  entrance  and  exit  of  blockade  run- 
ners. On  one  occasion,  off  New  Inlet,  at  midnight, 
on  the  /th  May,  1864,  one  of  these  rams  attacked 
the  vessels  of  the  inside  line  and  exchanged  shots 
with  several  of  them ;  but  they  being  weak  shells, 
contented  themselves  with  maneuvering  around 
their  big  enemy,  exchanging  rifle-shots  with  her, 
until  she  withdrew,  being  afraid  to  wait  for  daylight 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        255 

when  the  low  tide  would  have  kept  her  outside 
under  our  guns. 

It  was  in  June,  1863,  that  I  was  temporarily  de- 
tached from  the  sloop-of-war  "  Dacotah,"  and  sent 
to  take  the  command  of  the  triple-turreted  iron- 
clad "  Roanoke,"  on  her  trial  trip  from  New  York 
to  Hampton  Roads.  She  was  the  old  frigate 
"  Roanoke  "  razeed  and  heavily  plated  on  sides  and 
deck,  the  latter  being  six  or  eight  feet  above  water- 
line.  Three  monitor  revolving  turrets  protected 
her  heavy  battery. 

She  did  not  prove  a  success.  Her  gun-carriage 
compressors  were  so  bunglingly  contrived  that  when 
experimenting  with  her  guns  loaded  for  the  first 
time  with  shell,  the  carriage  was  wrecked  and  the 
recoiling  gun  nearly  disabled  the  turret.  When 
steaming  down  the  coast  a  moderate  gale  was  en- 
countered, and  she  proved  to  be  so  top-heavy  by 
reason  of  her  heavy  armor,  turrets  and  guns  that, 
to  prevent  her  turrets  from  going  over  the  side  in 
her  fearful  rolling,  they  had  to  be  braced  with 
heavy  beams. 

Her  ventilation  was  so  very  bad  that  I  welcomed 
the  day  when  my  experimental  cruise  was  over  and 
I  returned  to  blockade  duty. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

AFTER  SHERMAN'S  MARCH  TO  THE  SEA— FIRST  BOM- 
BARDMENT OF  FORT  FISHER — BUTLER'S  FIASCO  ! 

AFTER  Sherman's  march  to  the  sea,  blockade-run- 
ning was  principally  confined  to  the  Carolina  coast, 
and  we  were  kept  busy.  Rear-Admiral  David  D. 
Porter,  having  superseded  Acting  Rear-Admiral 
Lee,  who  was  sent  to  the  Mississippi  squadron, 
received  from  the  Navy  Department  all  the  facilities 
which  Lee  had  applied  for  in  vain,  and  the  con- 
centration of  iron-clads,  monitors,  frigates  and  sloops- 
of-war  at  Hampton  Roads  let  us  know  that  fighting 
days  had  come  to  us — the  fleet  being  organized  for 
the  capture  of  the  forts  at  the  entrances  of  Cape 
Fear  River. 

On  the  1 3th  of  October,  1864,  Admiral  Porter 
issued  his  order  announcing  the  formation  of  three 
divisions,  which  were  placed  under  the  command  of 
three  officers  who  had  not  participated  in  any  of 
our  hard  work  on  the  blockade.  He  had  mentioned 
to  me  personally  his  intention  to  do  this,  and  that 
my  vessel  would  be  attached  to  the  3d  division 
under  Commodore  Joseph  Lanman — whose  vessel 
did  not  go  outside  of  the  capes  until  she  sailed  for 
the  attack  on  Fort  Fisher. 
256 


FROM  REEFER  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL.   257 

I  had  been  until  that  time  the  divisional  com- 
mander on  the  Wilmington  blockade,  and  as  such 
under  the  law  was  entitled  to  a  certain  share  in  the 
prizes  taken  by  the  vessels  in  my  division  ;  so  I 
asked  the  Admiral  if  this  new  assignment  was  to 
deprive  me  of  what  was  mine  by  reason  of  the  labor 
and  responsibility  being  on  my  shoulders.  I  was 
assured  by  him  that  the  order  only  was  intended 
to  apply  to  the  arrangement  of  the  divisions  for  the 
contemplated  attack  on  Fort  Fisher,  and  that  I  was 
to  continue  as  divisional  commander  of  the  block- 
ading vessels  until  the  fighting  divisions  were  organ- 
ized off  the  coast  for  the  battle. 

Resting  content  with  this  assurance,  I  returned  to 
my  work  off  Cape  Fear,  and  several  rich  and  valu- 
able steamers  were  captured,  and  prize  lists  with  my 
name  attached  as  divisional  commander  were  sent 
in.  To  my  surprise,  I  was  later  informed  that  upon 
Lanman's  claim  my  name  was  stricken  out  and  his 
inserted,  thus  taking  a  clear  $14,000  from  my  pocket. 

Nor  could  I,  afterwards,  by  any  effort  procure 
any  relief  from  this  action,  which  I  considered,  with 
justification,  I  think,  a  great  wrong ;  and  I  always 
have  thought  it  strange  that,  after  the  statement  of 
facts  which  I  presented,  Commodore  Joseph  Lanman 
should  have  persisted  in  his  claim,  when  he  knew 
that  he  had  not  given  an  order  regarding  the 
blockade  service  in  the  discharge  of  which  the 
captures  were  made,  and  could  not  have  told  the 
names  of  the  capturing  vessels,  so  little  did  he 
know  of  them  or  their  work. 
17 


258        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

It  was  on  the  igth  of  December,  1864,  that  the 
combined  divisions  of  the  fleet  assembled  off  Cape 
Fear  to  the  northward  of  Frying  Pan  Shoals — far 
out  of  sight  of  land — for  the  attack  on  Fort  Fisher. 

General  Benjamin  F.  Butler,  with  his  army  force 
in  transports,  being  some  distance  up  the  coast,  pre- 
pared to  land  and  co-operate  with  the  fleet  after 
the  bombardment  had  begun.  Captain  Rhind  and 
Lieutenant  Preston  were  ready  with  their  monster 
torpedo,  the  steamer  "  Louisiana,"'  loaded  with  bags 
of  gunpowder,  to  be  exploded  en  masse  at  a  given 
time  by  shells  distributed  through  it ;  and  the  gal- 
lant Roswell  H.  Lamson,  in  a  small  swift  steamer, 
the  "  Wilderness,"  was  at  hand  to  bring  them  off  in 
safety  after  the  time  fuses  should  have  been  fired. 

A  strong  southwest  gale  was  blowing  for  two  or 
three  days,  holding  the  fleet  to  its  anchors,  but,  mod- 
erating on  the  night  of  the  22d,  the  torpedo  boat  was 
sent  in,  and  at  1.30  a.  m.,  the  next  morning,  she  ex- 
ploded. It  was  afterwards  ascertained  that  little 
or  no  serious  damage  was  done,  by  reason,  it  was 
supposed,  of  the  fact  that,  when  exploded,  the 
steamer  had  been  anchored  with  one  or  two  feet  of 
water  under  her  keel,  whereas  she  should  have  been 
driven  hard  on  the  beach  to  have  communicated 
the  force  of  the  concussion  to  the  land. 

At  7  a.  m.  at  the  signal  to  get  under  way,  we  fell 
into  our  place  in  line  astern  of  the  St.  lago  de  Cuba, 
commanded  by  Captain  O.  H.  Glisson,  the  rest  of  the 
fleet,  also  getting  under  way  and  steaming  slowly  in 
towards  the  land,  taking  up  position  according  to 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

the  plan  prepared  by  the  Admiral,  the  "  New  Iron- 
sides "  opening  the  ball  to  get  the  range,  when  the 
monitors  followed  suit.  We  anchored  ahead  of  the 
"Juniata"  and  commenced  firing,  our  nine-inch  shot 
falling  short  and  our  rifled  Parrott-gun  scarce  reach- 
ing. Fortunately  our  anchor  dragged,  which  gave 
me  good  excuse  to  weigh  it,  and  cutting  the  spring 
hawsers,  I  steamed  to  a  better  position,  when  our 
senior  Captain  Glisson  signaled  to  me  to  follow 
him,  and  we  went  down  the  line  and  taking  position 
near  the  iron-clads  opened  fire  again  upon  the  fort, 
which  we  maintained  until  sunset,  when  at  the 
signal  from  the  flagship  we  retired. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  bombardment  the  fort  an- 
swered our  fire  very  briskly  ;  but  this  sensibly  slack- 
ened, until  we  began  to  retire,  when  they  again 
fired  more  rapidly  from  the  fort.  Shot  fell  all  around 
us,  but  my  vessel  was  not  hit. 

On  Christmas  morning,  my  vessel,  being  detailed 
to  take  north  the  men  killed  and  wounded  by  the 
bursting  of  the  heavy  Parrott-guns  on  the  "  Ticon- 
deroga,"  "  Juniata  "  and  "Yantic,"  did  not  form  in 
line,  with  the  others.  Our  boats,  however,  were  sent 
to  assist  in  the  landing  of  Butler's  forces,  over  3,000 
men  going  ashore  and  marching  down  the  beach 
with  skirmishers  ahead,  the  gunboats  shelling  the 
beach  in  front  and  in  their  rear. 

We  stood  along  the  shore  in  four  and  a  half 
fathoms,  and  could  see  the  scattering  of  the  rebels 
with  their  field-pieces,  as  our  shells  fell  among  them. 
Towards  dark  the  army  had  approached  to  within 


260        FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

range  of  the  outworks  of  Fort  Fisher,  and  with  my 
glass,  from  my  station  on  the  starboard  paddlebox 
of  the  "  Fort  Jackson,"  I  could  see  a  party  enter  one 
of  the  abandoned  outposts  and  afterwards  come 
down  to  the  beach  with  a  rebel  battle-flag  in  their 
possession. 

The  ridges  of  sand  hills  were  at  once  occupied  by 
the  troops,  the  monitors  in  the  mean  time,  with  their 
heavy  shells,  making  the  sand  fly  in  clouds  in  the 
bastions  and  traverses  of  the  main  fort,  cutting 
away  the  second  flagstaff. 

At  dark  large  volumes  of  smoke  rising  from 
within  the  fort  told  us  that  their  buildings  had 
been  fired  by  our  exploding  shells. 

The  next  morning  General  Butler  declared  that 
the  fort  was  impregnable,  not  having  been  injured 
by  our  bombardment,  and  announced  his  intention 
of  embarking  his  troops,  which  he  did  in  spite  of 
Admiral  Porter's  protest ;  and  he  withdrew,  thus  ter- 
minating the  attack  without  anything  being  achieved 
to  compensate  for  the  vast  amount  of  ammunition 
expended,  and  to  the  great  disappointment  of  the 
officers  and  men,  who  were  bitter  in  their  denunci- 
ations of  Butler's  ignorance  or  cowardice. 

I  was  ordered  to  tow  the  monitor  "Mahopac"to 
Beaufort,  N.  C.,  where  the  fleet  was  to  rendezvous, 
and  steaming  slowly  I  reached  there  on  the  morning 
of  the  27th  of  the  month,  and  sending  in  the  dead 
for  burial,  left  the  "  Mahopac  "  to  steam  in  alone, 
and  proceeded  with  the  wounded  northward  for 
Norfolk,  Va. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

SECOND  BOMBARDMENT  AND  CAPTURE  OF  FORT 
FISHER — LAND  ASSAULT  BY  THE  NAVY — GREAT 
GALLANTRY  OF  THE  ARMY — SCENES  FROM  THE 
"  FORT  JACKSON." 

THIS  failure  of  his  plans  filled  Admiral  Porter 
with  indignation,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  express 
his  mind  strongly  and  openly  about  the  cause  of  it, 
knowing  that  his  whole  fleet  shared  his  views. 

He  was  determined  upon  success,  as  he  always 
was  through  life,  his  indomitable  pluck  and  energy 
forbidding  his  standing  still  a  moment ;  and  he  earn- 
estly applied  to  General  Grant  for  proper  co-opera- 
tion, which  that  officer,  filled  with  confidence  in  Por- 
ter's skill  and  ability,  gladly  and  promptly  gave  him, 
sending  a  new  force  under  General  A.  H.  Terry  to 
unite  with  him  in  his  task. 

So  it  was  that  on  January  I2th,  1865,  the  fleet, 
which  was  concentrated  off  Beaufort  Bar,  got  under 
way  and  steamed  down  the  coast  in  line  of  battle. 
The  "  Fort  Jackson  "  had  the  "  Mahopac  "  in  tow, 
the  "  Vanderbilt,"  "  St.  lago  de  Cuba,"  "  Alabama" 
and  "  Rhode  Island "  towing  the  other  iron-clads. 
The  army  transports  followed  behind  the  fleet. 

It  was  a  grand  sight  to  behold  that  fleet  of  forty- 

261 


262       FROM    REEFER   TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

two  men-of-war  and  seventeen  transports  in  array 
steaming  down  towards  the  fort.  We  reached  New 
Inlet  Bar  at  9.30  p.  m.  that  day.  The  next  morn- 
ing all  the  vessels  sent  boats  to  assist  in  landing  the 
troops,  (8,000  men)  with  field-guns,  ammunition  and 
provisions.  Whilst  the  iron-clads, having  resumed  the 
positions  they  had  occupied  at  the  first  bombardment, 
opened  fire  on  the  fort,  our  line  of  vessels  shelled 
the  sand  hills  and  woods  in  advance  of  the  army 
until  they  had  selected  their  lines  and  had  firmly 
entrenched  themselves,  when  we  felt  they  could  take 
care  of  any  enemy  approaching  from  Wilmington 
on  their  rear. 

At  4  p.  m.  signal  was  made  for  the  ist  and  2d 
lines  to  join  in  the  attack,  and  the  troops  on  shore 
could  be  seen  advancing  as  we  steamed  down  to  our 
position,  a  beautiful  sight  being  presented  by  that 
mass  of  "  boys  in  blue  "  who  covered  the  beach,  fol- 
lowing our  first  line  of  gunboats. 

The  firing  from  the  frigates  was  beautifully  done, 
the  shells  fairly  showering  over  into  the  fort  and  the 
bombardment  being  maintained  by  the  whole  force. 
Even  such  little  steamers  as  the  "  Gettysburg  "  with 
her  one  3O-pounder  Parrott  popped  away  with  the 
rest  until  after  dark,  and  it  was  a  magnificent  sight ! 
When  we  had  accomplished  our  individual  work  of 
clearing  the  beach  for  the  army  we  had  nothing  to  do 
but  to  look  on,  and  it  was  truly  inspiriting  to  see  our 
sailors,  in  the  very  best  of  spirits,  standing  to  their 
guns,  and  the  officers  waving  their  caps  as  they 
passed  close  to  us  to  take  up  their  positions  close  in 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       263 

to  the  fort.  When  they  opened  fire  it  seemed  to  rain 
shells,  and,  as  the  night  drew  over  the  scene  its  veil 
of  darkness,  it  seemed  one  grand  pyrotechnic  dis- 
play as  the  guns  flashed  brightly  and  shells  exploded 
in  the  air. 

During  the  night  the  iron-clads  kept  up  a  regular 
fire  at  intervals  to  keep  them  stirred  up  in  the  fort. 
At  dawn  on  the  I4th,  from  our  position  protecting 
the  flank  of  the  troops  ashore,  we  could  see  that 
they  had  not  been  idle  but  had  gathered  in  corral 
quite  a  herd  of  cattle  on  the  beach.  Our  fleet  and 
the  iron-clads  were  doing  some  beautiful  marksman- 
ship, landing  their  shells  between  and  in  the  enemy's 
traverses,  throwing  up  clouds  of  sand  and  driving  the 
rebels  from  their  guns.  I  saw  several  alight  near  a 
gun,  between  a  couple  of  traverses,  and  the  men 
kept  on  loading  their  gun  and  were  training  it  on 
the  fleet,  when  another  shell  exploded  right  over 
them  and  cleaned  them  away  entirely,  that  gun  not 
being  fired  afterwards. 

During  the  day  we  could  see  the  rebel  gunboat 
"  Chickamauga  "  and  another,  the  "  Virginia,"  firing 
at  our  pickets  from  above  Reeve's  Point.  The  fort 
and  batteries  kept  up  a  brisk  response  to  our  guns. 

The  army  pickets  by  nightfall  had  advanced  to 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  fort,  and  after  dark  a  line 
of  camp-fires  lit  up  the  long  stretch  of  beach. 

At  8  a.  m.,  on  the  morning  of  the  I5th  of  January, 
from  the  flagship  "  Malvern,"  signal  was  made  to 
send  armed  boats  ready  for  landing,  and  fifty  sailors 
and  sixteen  marines,  under  the  command  of  Lieu- 


264       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

tenant  S.  H.  Hunt  and  Acting  Master  Coney,  were 
sent  from  my  vessel.  Joining  the  numerous  boats 
from  the  other  vessels  of  the  fleet,  they  pulled 
in  for  the  beach  through  the  surf,  and  the  naval 
brigade  soon  landed,  and  we  could  see  them  being 
formed  into  divisions  as  they  reported  to  their  com- 
manding officer. 

At  9,  signal  was  made  for  the  fleet  to  form  line 
of  battle  and  await  further  others ;  and  the  first  and 
second  lines  began  soon  to  move  slowly  past  us  to 
the  attack,  the  "  Ironsides  "  and  the  monitors  with 
their  fifteen-inch  guns  being  the  first  to  engage  the 
fort.  At  10,  our  line  was  signalled  to  take  up  its  po- 
sition, and  we  were  soon  off  the  bar  where  at  high 
water  there  was  only  four-and-a-half  fathoms'  depth. 

The  "  Fort  Jackson  "  passed  ahead  of  the  "  St. 
lago  de  Cuba,"  and,  anchoring  with  spring  kedge 
astern  and  port  bower  anchor,  we  were  scarcely  in 
position  when  from  the  heavy  guns  on  the  "Mound" 
and  its  adjacent  batteries  a  sharp  fire  was  opened 
upon  us.  The  "  St.  lago  de  Cuba  "  soon  afterwards 
dragging,  or  for  some  other  cause,  dropped  out,  and 
the  other  vessels  of  the  line  not  coming  up  we 
were  left  alone  to  receive  the  undivided  attention 
of  the  Mound  and  the  three  next  batteries.  They 
made  it  very  hot  for  us  for  a  while,  the  shot  and 
shell  falling  thick  around  and  over  us  and  coming 
most  uncomfortably  near,  one  shell  exploding  just 
above  my  head,  the  pieces  cutting  the  paddle-box 
near  me  and  the  deck  in  several  places,  without 
wounding  a  man. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       265 

This  continued  for  a  short  time,  when  the  other 
vessels,  coming  up  into  position,  took  off  a  portion 
of  this  fire  from  us.  One  shell,  whilst  this  maneu- 
ver was  going  on,  striking  short,  ricochetted  over 
our  deck  and  entered  the  side  of  the  "  Osceola, "com- 
manded by  my  friend  J.  M.  B.  Clitz,  that  was  passing 
outside  of  us,  exploding  and  setting  her  on  fire  near 
her  magazine  ;  but  the  blaze  was  safely  extinguished. 

In  the  mean-time,  from  my  post  on  the  paddle- 
box  I  could  see  the  formation  of  our  naval  brigade 
on  the  shore  and  their  march  towards  the  fort  ; 
their  halt  for  rest  near  the  fort  at  the  water's  edge 
where  they  threw  themselves  down  to  await  the 
signal  from  the  "  Malvern."  The  monitors  sent 
their  huge  shell  over  the  column  at  the  fort. 

Knowing  that  my  son  Preston,  who  was  an  act- 
ing ensign  on  the  "  Gettysburg,"  and  my  son  Ho- 
ban,  an  ensign  in  the  regular  navy  on  the  "  Shenan- 
doah  "  were  in  the  assaulting  column  ashore,  my  eyes 
were  naturally  turned  to  the  beach  whenever  I  could 
turn  for  a  moment  from  the  work  of  my  vessel. 

At  this  time  a  perfect  hurricane  of  shot  and  shell 
was  poured  upon  the  whole  fortification  to  disable 
as  many  of  its  guns  as  possible  before  our  land 
party  should  move  to  the  assault,  and  when  at  the 
opportune  moment  three  sharp  signals  from  the 
steam-whistle  of  the  flagship  directed  us  to  change 
the  line  of  our  fire  down  towards  the  "  Mound,"  we 
could  see  our  sailors  jump  to  their  feet  and,  with 
their  boat-flags  flying,  go  charging  towards  the  face 
of  the  fort. 


266       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

As  the  fire  on  the  main  fort  slackened,  the  enemy 
evidently  discovered  quickly  the  attack,  and  we 
could  see  their  force  gathering  in  large  numbers 
from  the  adjacent  batteries.  Forming  in  force  on 
the  parapet  fronting  our  column,  they  opened  from 
great-guns  and  small-arms  a  terrible  fusilade  upon  our 
sailors  and  marines,  whose  bodies  we  could  see  fall- 
ing like  ten-pins  and  strewing  the  beach  as  the 
column  swept  forward. 

Our  men  were  unable  to  pass  the  high  palisades 
in  the  face  of  this  terrific  fire,  and  we  could  see  them 
halt  there  close  to  the  fort,  stand  awhile  inactive, 
and  then  suddenly  turn  and  retreat  en  masse  back 
up  the  beach.  The  heavy  guns  from  the  Mound 
battery  with  grape  hurtling  against  the  rear  of  our 
retreating  column  dropped  the  men  like  sheep  and 
hurried  them  on  their  retrograde  movement. 

Whilst  the  rebels,  so  concentrated  in  all  their  force 
on  the  sea  front,  were  thus  checking  and  sweeping 
back  our  sailors  and  marines,  in  the  belief  that  it 
was  the  main  attack  of  the  combined  army  and 
navy  forces,  General  Terry  with  his  brave  soldiers, 
bravely  led,  had  passed  the  shattered  palisades  on 
the  other  flank  of  the  fort  unresisted,  and,  before 
its  defenders  could  turn  their  attention  from  our 
sailors,  had  gained  six  of  the  traverses  on  its  north 
face. 

There  the  heaviest  hand-to-hand  fighting  began, 
for  the  brave  Colonel  William  Lamb  met  our 
soldiers  at  the  seventh  traverse,  and  foot  by  foot  con- 
tested the  way  ;  but  we  could  see  our  soldiers  press 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        267 

on  and  the  Stars  and  Stripes  move  on  from  traverse 
to  traverse  as  they  were  won. 

Then  the  Mound  battery  and  the  square  casemate 
battery  on  the  extreme  point  opened  fire  upon  that 
part  of  the  fort  where  our  flag  was  flying,  and  the 
Admiral  signaled  to  us  to  open  fire  on  the  Mound, 
which  was  silenced  just  as  the  sun  was  setting  by 
the  concentrated  fire  of  all  the  vessels  in  range. 
With  my  glass  I  saw  the  shell  strike  and  explode, 
whilst  the  gunners  were  loading  their  guns  on  the 
Mound,  and  they  were  swept  from  their  pieces,  leav- 
ing the  rammer  still  in  the  muzzle  of  one  of  the  guns. 

At  10  p.  m.  great  cheering  amongst  the  vessels, 
the  bursting  of  rockets  and  the  shrieking  of  steam 
whistles  throughout  the  fleet  told  us  that  the 
Admiral  had  heard  that  the  whole  fortification  was 
in  our  possession.  I  took  my  gig  and  went  on 
board  the  flagship  "  Malvern,"  to  congratulate  my 
friend  Porter  on  his  great  victory,  when  Lieuten- 
ant Wm.  B.  Gushing  rushed  up  to  me  in  the  cabin 
and  told  me  that  my  sons,  who  had  done  good 
service  ashore,  were  both  safe ;  that  he  had  found 
them,  with  their  men,  working  back  to  the  fort, 
after  the  defeat  of  our  column,  with  a  view  to  res- 
cuing those  who  were  cut  off  under  the  palisades  ; 
and  although  they  had  advanced  until  again  under 
fire  from  the  rebels  on  the  sea-front  of  the  fort, 
he  had  been  compelled  by  the  request  of  General 
Terry  to  step  their  contemplated  movement,  and 
to  order  them  back  to  the  army  lines  to  relieve 
the  engineer  brigade,  and  guard  the  rear  from  any 


268       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

attack  ;  and  that  they  had  formed  their  men,  and 
with  flags  flying  had  coolly  marched  down  the 
beach  to  their  places  in  the  intrenchments,  where 
they  were  then  on  duty. 

This  great  cause  of  anxiety  to  me  being  removed, 
I  could  gladly  enter  into  and  enjoy  Admiral  Por- 
ter's gratification,  and  could  appreciate  his  loud 
praises  of  General  Terry  and  his  brave  soldiers  for 
the  victory  so  stoutly  fought  for  and  won.  My 
anxiety  during  the  assault  would  have  been  greater 
had  I  known  that  our  naval  brigade  had  advanced 
over  a  number  of  heavy  torpedoes  buried  in  the 
sand  by  the  rebels,  who  intended  to  explode  them 
and  annihilate  the  attacking  force;  but  a  fifteen- 
inch  shell  from  a  monitor  had  cut  the  wires  at  the 
angle  of  the  fort  leading  to  the  casemate  containing 
the  battery,  and  so  had  disabled  the  torpedoes.  My 
son  Preston  the  next  morning  obtained  a  good 
piece  of  the  wire  where  it  was  so  cut,  and  brought 
it  to  me  as  a  trophy,  as  he  now  considers  it. 

Whilst  I  was  on  the  flagship  a  message  came 
from  General  Terry,  stating  that  the  enemy  was 
massing  on  his  rear,  and  gunboats  were  sent  to  shell 
them  away. 

At  daylight  on  the  1 6th  of  January  it  was  a  grateful 
sight  to  behold  the  Stars  and  Stripes  flying  over  the 
fort,  the  whole  of  Federal  Point  in  our  possession, 
and  light-draft  gunboats  steaming  in  over  the  bar. 

I  thought  that  at  last,  for  the  first  time  in  three 
long  years  of  service  there,  I  could  indulge  myself, 
and  undress  at  night  for  a  comfortable  sleep  in  my 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        269 

bunk, — a  treat  I  had  not  permitted  myself  during 
my  whole  service  on  the  blockade.  The  wear  and 
tear  of  this  loss  of  rest,  with  the  anxiety  attending 
the -responsibility  upon  me,  had  told  severely  upon 
my  strength  and  health. 

At  8.30  a.  m.  there  was  a  terrific  explosion  of  the 
magazine  of  the  fort,  which  killed  hundreds  of  our 
soldiers.  But  my  son  Preston  wrote  me  that  he 
had  just  left  the  fort  to  go  to  his  wounded  captain 
on  the  "  Gettysburg,"  and  so  escaped,  whilst  two  of 
his  brother-officers  remaining  there  had  I  ^en  killed. 

At  10.  a.  m.  the  wounded  of  the  fleet  were  sent  to 
the  "  Fort  Jackson,"  and  I  was  directed  to  take  them 
to  Norfolk,  which  I  did,  and  taking  in  a  supply  of 
shell  and  ammunition  for  the  fleet  returned  to  the 
scene  of  action. 

It  was  a  great  source  of  amusement  for  us  to  read 
at  that  time  in  the  daily  newspapers  that  General 
Butler  had  been  before  a  committee  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  explaining  the  solid  reasons  for  his 
withdrawal  after  the  first  bombardment,  and  was  de- 
monstrating the  entire  impregnability  of  Fort  Fisher, 
when  the  despatch  was  handed  in.  and  read  announc- 
ing that  Porter  and  Terry  were  in  possession  of  it. 

On  the  28th  of  January,  the  "  Rhode  Island  "  came 
to  New  Inlet,  with  Lieutenant-General  U.  S.  Grant 
and  my  old  friend  G.  V.  Fox,  then  Assistant  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy,  and  I  ordered  the  "  Emma  "  to 
take  them  in  over  the  bar  to  Admiral  Porter,  and 
then  signaled  to  General  Terry  to  meet  them  on 
board  of  the  flagship  "  Malvern." 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

ORDERED  TO  COMMAND  THE  2D  DIVISION  OF  WEST 
GULF  BLOCKADING  SQUADRON— BUSY  WORK— 
FLAGS  OF  TRUCE — NEGOTIATIONS  FOR  SURREN- 
DER—TERMS OF  FINAL  SURRENDER  OF  THE  LAST 
FOOTHOLD  OF  THE  CONFEDERACY  AGREED  TO 
AND  SIGNED  IN  THE  CABIN  OF  THE  U.  S.  "  FORT 

JACKSON"  ON  JUNE  2D,  1865 — i  TAKE  POSSES- 
SION OF  GALVESTON  AND  HOIST  THE  "STARS 

AND  STRIPES"  ONCE  MORE — CORRESPONDENCE 
WITH  GENERAL  J.  BANKHEAD  MAGRUDER,  COM- 
MANDING THE  REBEL  FORCES — PROMOTED  TO 
RANK  OF  COMMODORE. 

OUR  work  being  done  at  this  point,  I  received 
orders  to  steam  for  the  West  Gulf  squadron,  and  I 
left  Cape  Fear  on  February  1st  and  reached  Pensa- 
cola  on  the  I4th  of  the  month. 

Admiral  Henry  K.  Thatcher  gave  me  the  com- 
mand of  the  second  division  of  the  squadron  sta- 
tioned off  Galveston,  which,  in  March,  was  made  the 
third  division,  and  I  promptly  sailed  for  my  new 
post  and  soon  had  matters  running  after  the  fashion 

of  our  northern  blockade. 
270 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        271 

I  found  that  frequently  our  blockaders  would  stir 
the  people  ashore  up  by  dropping  shell  into  houses, 
by  way  of  target  practice ;  but  deeming  it  cruelty 
and  unnecessary  to  thus  endanger  the  lives  of  those 
not  actually  in  arms  against  us,  I  forbade  the  prac- 
tice, and  directed  closer  attention  to  the  necessary 
duties  of  the  blockade. 

This  coast  presenting  now  the  only  inlets  for 
blockade-running,  we  were  kept  exceedingly  busy, 
and  the  runners,  being  so  much  swifter  than  the  lame 
ducks  of  my  division,  frequently  got  in ;  but  we 
made  many  captures.  On  one  occasion  a  long,  low 
steamer  went  boldly  in  along  the  beach,  taking  our 
broadsides  which  fairly  ripped  her  sides,  but  she 
escaped  capture. 

From  the  flagstaff  on  the  custom  house  at 
Galveston  the  flags  of  truce  were  now  often  flying, 
and  communications  made  with  us.  On  the  i6th 
of  April  the  steamer  "  Arkansas  "  brought  us  news 
of  the  capture  of  Richmond,  and  the  "  New  London*' 
ten  days  later  steamed  in  with  news  of  the  surrender 
of  Generals  Lee  and  Johnston  with  their  armies.  I 
had  salutes  fired  from  all  our  vessels,  which  dressed 
ship  amidst  great  rejoicing,  and  I  at  once  sent  the 
news  in  to  Galveston  by  a  flag  of  truce. 

Upon  the  receipt  of  the  news  of  Lincoln's  assas- 
sination a  thrill  of  horror  went  through  the  fleet, 
and  we  mourned  the  loss  of  our  distinguished  pres- 
ident. 

General  Magruder  sent  word  that  he  had  arrived 
in  Galveston.  On  the  2ist  of  May,  I  sent  in  the 


272       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

"  Seminole  "  to  the  bar  to  take  in  General  Wilcox  and 
other  paroled  prisoners  who  were  to  be  landed  at 
Galveston  under  a  flag  of  truce,  and  the  boat 
meeting  ours  brought  word  that  General  Magruder 
desired  to  negotiate  for  peace,  and  I  sent  Lieutenant 
McKay  to  Admiral  Thatcher  with  the  communica- 
tion. 

At  2.30  p.  m.,  on  the  25th  of  May,  1865,  I  re- 
ceived the  following  communication  from  General 
Magruder  : 

HEADQUARTERS  DISTRICT  TEXAS,  etc. 

HOUSTON,  MAY  24th,  1865. 

To  CAPTAIN  B.  F.  SANDS, 

Comdg.  U.  S.  Fleet  off  Galveston. 

Sir: 

The  restoration  of  peace  in  this  District  is 
the  object  and  I  believe  will  be  the  result  of  the 
commission  I  am  sending  through  your  courtesy  to 
New  Orleans.  With  the  sincere  view  of  facilitating 
this  desirable  end  I  have  the  honor  to  propose  an 
armistice  between  the  naval  forces  on  the  coast  and 
the  troops  under  my  command,  to  continue  until 
the  results  of  the  conference  are  known,  or  until  you 
may  receive  instructions  from  the  U.  S.  authorities 
in  New  Orleans. 

Colonel  Ashbel  Smith  of  the  Confederate  army  and 
Mr.  W.  P.  Ballinger,  by  whom  this  communication 
is  sent,  are  the  commissioners  appointed  by  me  to 
proceed  to  New  Orleans  and  are  also  authorized  to 
arrange  the  terms  of  the  armistice.  They  will  take 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        273 

on  board  an  officer  or  officers,  who  will  bear  me  your 
answer. 

I   have  the  honor  to  be,  Captain, 
Very  respectfully  your  Obt.  Servt., 

J.  BANKHEAD  MAGRUDER, 

Major-Genl.  Commanding. 

To  this  I  sent  by  the  officers  this  brief  response  : 

U.  S.  STR.  FORT  JACKSON, 
Off  Galveston,  Texas. 
May  25th,  1869. 

MAJOR-GENL.  J.  BANKHEAD  MAGRUDER, 

Comdg.  District  of  Texas. 
Sir: 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  receipt 
of  your  communication  of  yesterday's  date,  and  will 
be  pleased  to  forward  to  New  Orleans  your  com- 
missioners, Colonel  Ashbel  Smith  and  Mr.  Wm.  P. 
Ballinger,  by  a  steamer  this  evening. 

The  question  of  armistice  I  cannot  consider;  but 
my  prompt  acquiescence  to  your  request  to  convey 
the  commissioners  should  be  sufficient  guarantee 
for  my  acts. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be, 

Very  respectfully,  etc. 

B.  F.  SANDS,  Captain, 
Comdg.  3d  Division  W.  G.  Squadron. 

By  the  steamer  "Antona"   I    sent   the  commis- 
sioners to  New  Orleans,  and  I  sent  that  same  day  a 
18 


274       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

report  to  Admiral  Thatcher  at  Pensacola,  informing 
him  of  the  propositions  made.  He  wrote  me  that  he 
would  go  to  New  Orleans  at  once,  and  approved  my 
course. 

Pending  these  negotiations  in  New  Orleans  I 
received  the  following  communication  from  General 
Magruder. 

"  By  State  Telegraph  Line," 

Via  Galveston,  May  27th,  1865. 

HD-QRS.,  DISTRICT  TEXAS,  N.  M.  &  A. 

HOUSTON,  May  27th,  1865. 

To  CAPTAIN  B.  F.  SANDS, 

Comdg.  W.  G.  Squadron  off  Galveston. 

Captain  : 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  re- 
ceipt of  your  communication  of  the  25th  instant, 
with  which  I  am  satisfied.  It  may  be  desirable  to 
remove  some  troops  from  Galveston  Island  and 
substitute  others,  but  I  have  to  assure  you  that  there 
will  be  no  increase  or  diminution  of  the  garrison  of 
that  place,  and  I  have  given  the  order  to  Colonel 
Mann  commanding  at  Galveston  to  impress  upon 
his  men  to  do  no  act  to  disturb  the  present  relations 
existing  between  the  fleet  and  the  garrison. 

I  have  left  small  garrisons  at  Sabine  Pass  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Brazos. 

I  would  suggest,  in  the  same  sincere  spirit  which 
you  manifest,  to  settle  those  momentous  difficulties 
between  the  State  of  Texas  and  the  United  States, 
that  you  give  orders  without  delay  to  the  com- 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        275 

manding  officers  of  the  blockading  squadron  off 
Sabine  Pass  and  the  mouth  of  the  Brazos,  to  pre- 
serve the  status  which  at  present  exists,  until  the 
termination  of  the  present  negotiations,  or  until  you 
have  received  other  instructions  from  the  U.  S. 
authorities,  and  I  enclose  you  copies  of  orders  to 
the  commanding  officers  at  Sabine  Pass  and  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Brazos,  which  I  beg  leave  to  request 
that  you  will  send  by  steamer  under  flag  of  truce  as 
addressed. 

They  are  left  open  for  your  perusal.  The  delivery 
of  these  two  orders  will,  I  think,  insure  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  present  status. 

The  frankness  with  which  I  submit  these  orders 
to  you  is  the  best  evidence  of  the  sincerity  of  my 
intentions  to  act  in  perfect  good  faith. 

I  had  been  notified  already  of  the  evacuation  of 
those  points,  by  report  from  the  officer  stationed 
there,  and  I  wrote  to  General  Magruder,  informing 
him  of  that  fact,  and  at  'the  same  time  stated  that, 
with  a  desire  of  preserving  the  existing  condition  of 
things,  I  had  not  taken  possession  of  them. 

As  I  had  notified  my  Admiral,  the  people  of 
Texas  and  the  army  there  were  very  much  excited 
and  divided  in  regard  to  the  negotiations  in  prog- 
ress, and  I  was  obliged  to  be  very  cautious  so  as 
to  avoid  acts  that  might  interrupt  or  disturb  the 
situation. 

I  received  an  answer  from  General  Magruder, 
which  I  give  : 


276       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

HEADQUARTERS,  DISTRICT  TEXAS,  ETC., 
HOUSTON,  May  13,  1865. 

COMMODORE  SANDS, 

Commanding  U.  S.  Fleet,  off  Galveston. 
SIR  : — I  have  just  received  your  note  of  the  2pth 
inst.     I  assure  you  I  appreciate  highly  the  delicacy 
of  the  course  you  have  pursued  towards  me. 

I  was  not  aware  of  the  evacuation  of  Sabine  Pass 
and  Velasco,   when   I  gave  the  order   alluded    to, 
otherwise  I  would  not  have  given  you  the  trouble 
of  communicating  with  these  places. 
I  am,  Commodore, 
Very  respectfully, 

Your  obt.  serv't, 
J.  BANKHEAD  MAGRUDER, 
Major-Genl.  Comdg.  District,  etc. 

Upon  the  arrival  of  Brigadier-General  E.  J.  Davis, 
on  the  3 1st  May,  representing  General  Canby,  the  fact 
was  communicated  to  the  authorities  in  Galveston, 
and  on  the  2d  of  June  Brigadier-General  E.  J. 
Davis,  U.  S.  Army,  accompanied  by  General  J. 
Kirby  Smith,  commanding  the  trans-Mississippi 
forces  of  the  Confederacy,  and  Major-General  J. 
Bankhead  Magruder,  commanding  the  District  of 
Texas,  with  Captain  Mead  and  Dr.  Yandell  of  their 
staffs,  came  on  board  my  vessel,  the  "  Fort  Jack- 
son," and  discussed  the  articles  of  agreement  for 
the  surrender  of  the  last  armed  forces  of  the 
rebellion.  I  had  invited  Commander  A.  G.  Clary, 
of  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Seminole,"  Commander  Thomas  H. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        277 

Stevens,  of  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Oneida,"  and  Commander 
John  Dowries,  of  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Grand  Gulf,"  to 
witness  the  ceremonies,  and  in  the  presence  of  those 
named,  at  5  p.  m.,  in  my  cabin,  the  articles  of  sur- 
render were  signed  by  General  J.  Kirby  Smith, 
C.  S.  A.  By  sunset  I  had  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Alba- 
tross"  and  "  New  London  "  under  way  for  the  sta- 
tions up  and  down  the  coast,  with  copies  of  circulars 
signed,  some  by  General  Magruder  for  the  ports 
and  batteries  along  the  coast,  and  others  by  myself 
to  the  commanding  officers  of  the  blockading 
vessels,  to  notify  them  of  the  agreement  to  put 
an  end  to  hostilities,  and  to  secure  the  public  prop- 
erty for  the  government. 

The  signing  of  the  articles  of  surrender  was  an 
occasion  of  great  gratification  to  us  all,  and  the 
termination  of  hostilities  that  immediately  followed 
was  a  source  of  relief  to  us  who  had  so  long  been 
engaged  upon  the  arduous  duties  of  the  blockade. 

On  the  morning  of  June  5th  I  hoisted  my  divi- 
sional pennant  on  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Cornubia."  I  crossed 
the  bar  at  the  entrance  to  Galveston  Harbor,  and 
in  company  with  Commanders  Stevens  and  Downes 
and  Lieutenant-Commander  Wilson,  with  my 
orderly  and  Chief  Quartermaster  Knight,  I  landed 
in  Galveston,  and  was  met  upon  the  wharf  by  the 
Mayor  of  the  city,  Van  Horten,  who  conducted  us 
to  his  office,  followed  by  a  large  number  of  the 
citizens. 

Arriving  at  his  office  the  Mayor  made  an  address 
to  the  assembled  citizens,  informing  them  that  I 


278       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

had  come  ashore  to  hoist  the  flag  of  the  Union  over 
the  public  property,  and  expressing  the  hope  that 
good  order  would  be  preserved  and  continued. 

I  then  spoke  a  few  words  to  them,  expressing  my 
hope  and  confidence  that  nothing  would  thenceforth 
occur  to  disturb  the  harmonious  feelings  that  should 
now  prevail,  and  that,  the  surrender  having  been 
made,  we  were  all  once  more  together  under  the  old 
flag,  which  it  was  my  pleasant  duty  to  hoist  again 
over  Galveston, — a  ceremony  which  it  would  be  their 
duty  to  carry  on  in  the  future.  We  then  proceeded 
to  the  custom-house  and  there  hoisted  our  flag, 
which  now,  at  last,  was  flying  over  every  foot  of  our 
territory,  this  being  the  closing  act  of  the  great 
rebellion. 

After  strolling  around  the  city  for  a  while  we 
returned  in  the  "  Preston  "  to  the  fleet  outside. 

It  was  late  in  July  before  I  was  relieved  from  my 
duties  in  that  division  of  the  Gulf  squadron  ;  but 
the  2d  of  August  saw  my  vessel  at  anchor  at  the 
Brooklyn  Navy  Yard,  and  I  was  soon  afterwards  de- 
tached and  then  was  placed  on  duty  as  executive 
officer  of  the  Boston  Navy  Yard.  There  I  remained 
until  the  fall  of  1866,  being  then  detached  and 
placed  on  waiting  orders,  the  cold  climate  having 
been  too  trying  for  me  after  my  many  years'  service 
in  warm  latitudes. 

I  had  been  promoted  on  July  25th,  1866,  to  the 
grade  of  Commodore. 


CHAPTER   XXXI. 

DETACHED  FROM  BOSTON  NAVY  YARD — APPOINTED 
SUPERINTENDENT  OF  U.  S.  NAVAL  OBSERVATORY 
—MAY  1867 — SKETCH  OF  THAT  INSTITUTION 
AND  ITS  WORK — ATTEMPTS  OF  CIVILIANS  TO 
CHANGE  ITS  CONTROL— PROMOTION  TO  RANK  OF 
REAR-ADMIRAL. 

UPON  being  detached  from  the  Boston  Navy 
Yard,  I  returned  to  my  home  in  Washington,  where 
I  settled  down  for  a  good  rest,  being  for  the  first 
time  in  many  long  years  without  any  duty  to  occupy 
me.  I  was  beginning  to  enjoy  the  comforts  of 
home  life  when,  in  May,  1867,  the  necessities  of  the 
service  required  the  detail  of  Rear-Admiral  C.  H. 
Davis  to  the  command  of  the  South  Atlantic 
squadron,  thus  creating  a  vacancy  at  the  Naval 
Observatory. 

I  was  at  the  time  at  the  Norfolk  Navy  Yard,  on 
duty  as  president  of  a  court-martial,  and  one  day  at 
the  table  of  my  friend,  Captain  (now  Rear-Admiral) 
C.  Raymond  P.  Rodgers,  he  mentioned  the  fact 
that  it  had  been  intimated  to  him  that  the  place 
was  open  for  him  if  he  desired  it,  but  that  he  had 
declined  it,  not  caring  for  the  duty.  He  remarked, 
"  Sands,  that  would  be  the  place  for  you  !  "  But  I 

279 


280       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

also  stated  that  I  thought  I  was  not  suited  for  the 
work  there,  and  thought  no  more  of  it  at  the  time. 

Upon  returning  to  Washington,  however,  I  was 
approached  by  a  friend  at  the  Navy  Department  in 
regard  to  this  duty,  and  I  was  asked  if  I  would 
decline  if  it  was  offered  to  me.  I  replied  that  I  was 
seeking  duty,  and  could  not  afford  to  decline  any 
orders  given  to  me,  and  on  the  next  day  May  /th, 
1867,  I  was  ordered  to  succeed  Davis  as  Superin- 
tendent of  the  Naval  Observatory,  and  relieved  him 
on  the  day  following. 

I  had  been  rather  diffident  about  undertaking 
this  duty,  but  resolved  to  perform  it  to  the  best  of 
my  ability. 

The  Naval  Observatory  was  the  outgrowth  of  the 
South  Sea  Exploring  Expedition,  in  the  "  Depot  of 
Charts  and  Instruments,"  created,  when  that  expe- 
dition was  being  organized,  for  astronomical  obser- 
vations in  connection  therewith.  The  office  was  in 
possession  of  instruments  used  in  the  rating  of  chro- 
nometers, which  were  suitable  also  for  the  obser- 
vations required.  Lieutenant  J.  M.  Gillis  was  placed 
in  charge  in  a  part  of  the  house  on  the  Capitol 
Hill,  in  which  resided  the  family  of  Lieutenant 
Wilkes,  to  whom  had  been  given  the  command  of 
the  exploring  expedition. 

The  "  Depot "  was  afterwards  removed  to  the 
west  end  of  Pennsylvania  Avenue,  for  more  roomy 
quarters,  which  were  necessitated  by  its  growth 
under  Lieutenant  Matthew  F.  Maury. 

In  the  mean  time  Hon.  J.  Q.  Adams  had  obtained 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.        281 

from  Congress  an  appropriation  for  an  Astronomi- 
cal Observatory,  with  suitable  instruments,  to  be 
built  upon  University  Square,  its  present  location. 
It  was  still  styled  "  The  Depot  of  Charts  and  Instru- 
ments," for  Congress  did  not,  at  that  time,  seem 
disposed  to  create  new  institutions. 

Lieutenant  Gilliss  had  this  work  in  charge,  and 
when  the  new  buildings  were  finished,  in  September, 
1844,  and  the  instruments  mounted  in  their  places, 
they  were  turned  over  to  Lieutenant  Maury  for  his 
charts  and  instruments.  In  his  absence  I,  as  the 
next  in  rank  of  the  officers  attached  to  the  "  Depot," 
transferred  the  chronometers,  instruments,  and 
charts,  to  the  new  buildings. 

Under  Maury  the  work  of  the  Observatory  grad- 
ually increased  its  scope,  as  has  been  detailed  in  a 
"  Memoir  of  the  Founding  and  Progress  of  the 
United  States  Naval  Observatory,"  collated  with 
great  care  and  research  under  my  instructions,  by 
Professor  J.  E.  Nourse,  U.  S.  Navy,  in  the  latter 
part  of  1872,  and  published  by  the  Government, 
giving,  as  far  as  it  goes,  an  interesting  narrative  of 
the  institution  and  its  work. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  rebellion,  Commander  Gilliss 
succeeded  Commander  Maury,  who  had  "joined  his 
fortunes  with  those  of  his  native  State."  He  was 
devoted  to  astronomical  studies,  almost  the  whole 
of  his  duty  in  the  navy  being  in  such  pursuits.  He 
had  been  one  of  the  first  who  had  charge  of  the 
Observatory  in  its  infancy  ;  under  his  supervision 
the  building  had  been  constructed.  He  had  been 


282       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

sent  to  Europe  to  procure  the  instruments  for  it, 
and  had  commanded  an  astronomical  expedition  to 
Chili.  When  he  entered  upon  his  superintendency, 
the  work  of  the  institution  was  confined  more  strictly 
than  under  Maury  to  the  legitimate  astronomical 
work,  and  it  was  making  rapid  strides  toward  pre- 
eminence when,  unfortunately,  death  carried  him  off. 

Rear-Admiral  Davis  succeeded  him,  and  continued 
in  command  until  ordered  to  sea,  as  I  have  men- 
tioned. Under  him  the  astronomical  work  was  con- 
tinued, making  a  long  stride  upward,  and  under  his 
efforts  was  procured  the  addition  of  probably  the 
best  transit  instrument  that  could  be  obtained.  He 
was  drawn  aside  from  this  work  to  undertake  such 
side  issues  as  the  compilations  of  the  "  Isthmus  Canal 
Investigations,"  and  "  Arctic  Exploring  Expedi- 
tions," for  which,  however,  he  had  not  volunteered, 
but  these  works,  called  for  by  the  provisions  of 
resolutions  of  Congress  passed  at  the  instance  of 
third  parties,  being  entrusted  to  him,  were  under- 
taken and  completed  with  care  and  thoroughness. 

When  I  assumed  command,  I  found  but  one 
officer  on  duty  with  whom  I  had  been  acquainted 
before, — Professor  Ferguson, — having  been  associ- 
ated with  him  when  on  the  Coast  Survey,  under  Mr. 
Hassler.  To  his  assistance,  in  the  way  of  advice,  I 
looked  with  confidence,  and  was  much  gratified  at 
his  prompt  and  cordial  co-operation  with  me  ;  but  to 
my  great  regret,  and  to  the  great  loss  of  the 
Observatory,  he  lived  but  a  few  months  after  I 
assumed  charge. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       283 

I  found  serious  obstacles  meeting  me  at  the  out- 
set in  my  new  labors.  As  I  have  intimated,  in  the 
growth  of  the  Institution,  owing  to  outside  in- 
fluences or  to  the  bent  of  individuals,  it  had  begun 
to  expand  its  work  into  spheres  of  usefulness  not 
strictly  pertinent  to  the  object  intended  in  its  es- 
tablishment :  the  duties  of  a  hydrographic  office 
were  added,  and  meteorological  observations  un- 
dertaken, to  be  extended  to  the  giving  of  storm 
signals  along  the  coast  and  even  to  the  location  of 
"  peach  orchards  !  "  so  that  astronomy  became  not 
simply  and  purely  its  sole  province.  The  fre- 
quent changes  of  officers  appeared  also  to  militate 
against  its  interests  in  preventing  that  uniformity 
in  its  work  that  was  so  very  essential  to  its  suc- 
cess; consequently,  astronomers  and  other  scientists 
began  to  murmur  at  the  misapplication  of  its  func- 
tions. 

This  may  be  called  the  beginning  of  the  oppo- 
sition to  a  naval  administration  of  its  affairs — an  op- 
position which  met  me  at  the  threshold  of  my  work. 

Thrown  upon  my  own  resources  by  the  death  of 
my  friend  Ferguson,  I  made  a  quiet  but  careful 
study  of  the  workings  of  the  Observatory,  its  past 
management,  the  personnel  of  its  permanent  staff  of 
officers  and  the  departments  of  scientific  work  most 
agreeable  to  the  tastes  and  talents  of  each,  and  I 
finally  determined  upon  a  plan  of  my  own  which  I 
thought  would  obviate  all  difficulty  and  end  in  the 
advantage  of  the  institution  as  being  most  likely  to 
be  productive  of  valuable  astronomical  work. 


284       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

I  noted  that  the  annual  reports  of  the  work  done 
at  the  Observatory  in  preceding  years  were  all  nar- 
rated at  length  over  the  signature  of  the  superin- 
tendent, who,  whilst  giving  a  list  of  the  officers  at- 
tached to  the  Observatory,  seldom  accredited  to  them 
their  own  special  work.  This  I  thought  somewhat 
hard  upon  the  Professors,  and,  therefore,  calling 
them  together  I  assured  them  that  I  was  not  there 
to  rob  any  man  of  the  work  of  his  brain;  that  in  the 
future  every  officer  should  receive  full  credit  for 
whatever  valuable  scientific  work  he  did ;  that  I 
should  exact  a  report  from  each  over  his  own  sig- 
nature, thus  giving  each  full  credit  and  due  respon- 
sibility for  his  work ;  that  these  reports  should  be 
published  with  the  annual  volume  ;  and  that  any 
credit  that  should  come  to  me  would  be  reflective 
and  not  by  absorption. 

My  sole  idea  was  the  well-being  of  the  Observ- 
atory as  a  naval  institution  devoted  to  astronomical 
work,  and  this  action  seemed  to  clear  away  all 
doubts  of  fairness  toward  them  as  scientists  and 
gave  free  play  to  their  ambition.  The  result  is 
shown,  and  that  my  plan  worked  well  is  manifest,  in 
the  volumes  of  observations  annually  published  and 
in  the  position  to  which  the  Naval  Observatory 
rapidly  advanced  amongst  the  astronomical  insti- 
tutions of  the  world.  "All  hands"  united  their 
energies  for  the  advancement  of  the  work  upon 
which  they  were  engaged. 

The  Professors  had  been  almost  all  demoralized 
by  the  idea  that  the  naval  officers  were  making 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        285 

capital  out  of  other  men's  brains  ;  but  now  they  felt 
that  they  were  laboring  for  their  own  benefit, 
whilst  at  the  same  time  raising  the  character  and 
standing  of  the  Observatory  to  which  they  were 
attached. 

By  constant  intercourse  with  them  I  ascertained 
the  special  bent  of  each  individual  and  his  capability, 
and  made  a  programme  assigning  them  to  duties 
severally,  following  as  nearly  as  the  work  of  the 
Observatory  would  permit,  my  idea  of  their  favor- 
ite train  of  thought  and  study.  I  intimated  that  any 
change  upon  which  they  could  mutually  agree 
would  be  gladly  made,  so  that  I  could  have  them 
at  duties  most  congenial  to  each  individual  and 
most  promising  as  to  the  good  results  I  anticipated. 

Thus  was  all  intramural  difficulty  entirely  done 
away  with,  and  our  work  went  on  smoothly  and 
successfully,  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the 
Observatory  and  the  guarding  of  its  interests,  the 
mapping  out  of  its  future  work  and  attending  to 
its  resources,  taxing  my  attention,  and  the  corre- 
spondence with  other  kindred  institutions  and  as- 
tronomers all  over  the  world  keeping  my  time  Abun- 
dantly and  busily  occupied. 

As  the  years  passed  away  thus  harmoniously  the 
reputation  of  the  Institution  for  its  valuable  work 
most  rapidly  advanced.  I  was  at  one  time  particu- 
larly pleased  with  the  encomiums  brought  to  me  by 
Professor  Peirce,  superintendent  of  the  Coast  Survey, 
upon  his  return  from  Europe, — from  the  combined 
expeditions  sent  out  from  the  Coast  Survey  office 


286       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

and  the  Naval  Observatory  to  observe  the  eclipse  of 
the  sun, — when  he  said  that  our  Professors  were 
received  with  high  honors  by  their  confreres  in 
Europe,  and  that  everywhere  deference  was  shown 
to  them  as  coming  from  our  Naval  Observatory 
which  had  attained  to  a  position  on  the  plane  of  the 
highest  and  most  celebrated  in  Europe  ! 

He  assured  me  that  our  astronomers  were  no 
longer  in  the  leading-strings  of  European  observa- 
tories, but  were  among  the  leaders  in  astronomy, 
and  he  reached  the  climax  of  his  compliments  by 
saying  that  I  ought  to  be  proud  of  being  at  the 
head  of  such  an  institution. 

This  from  the  chief  of  a  department  of  science 
which  I  had  always  thought  covetous  of  the  con- 
trol of  the  Observatory  was  praise  indeed,  and  I 
appreciated  it  cordially. 

Although  I  had  overcome  the  obstacles  in  my 
way  within  the  walls,  I  still  encountered  now  and 
then  some  annoyance,  proceeding  from  certain 
envious  scientists  outside,  who  thought  that  such 
an  institution  should  be  in  their  hands.  But  one 
particular  instance  need  be  mentioned,  as  it  may 
serve  as  a  case  in  point  in  the  future. 

A  young  New  England  professor,  who  had  for  a 
short  period  served  at  Polkowa  Observatory,  and  not 
succeeding  very  well  there,  returned  home  and  ap- 
plied at  the  Bureau  of  Navigation  for  such  scientific 
duty  as  could  be  given  him.  He  was  referred  to  me, 
and  he  was  assigned  to  duty  as  an  "aid  "at  the  Ob- 
servatory, and  shortly  afterwards  receiving  an  offer 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        287 

from  the  Cincinnati  Observatory,  accepted  it  and 
resigned  his  place  with  us. 

That  his  work  there  might  receive  all  the  assist- 
ance possible  from  us,  he  was  given,  for  the  library 
of  that  Observatory,  duplicates  of  astronomical 
works  from  our  library,  and  we  loaned  him  chro- 
nometers. 

He  had  not  been  on  duty  at  his  new  post  long 
when  I  discovered  that  he  was  stirring  up  antagon- 
ism towards  the  naval  administration  of  our  Observ- 
atory by  sending  out  circulars  to  the  directors  of 
the  several  astronomical  observatories,  great  and 
small,  throughout  the  country,  with  a  view  to  get- 
ting up  a  petition  to  Congress  to  change  the  naval 
administration  of  this  Institution,  and  to  appoint 
none  but  scientists  of  recognized  and  eminent  abili- 
ties to  the  superintendency  ! 

He  thought  the  time  was  ripe  to  utilize  the  envy 
of  those  scientists  who  might  dislike  seeing  any  in- 
stitution of  such  eminence  independent  of  their  con- 
trol, and  thought  that  now  that  such  position  had 
been  reached  by  the  Naval  Observatory,  they  would 
prove  eager  to  get  control  of  it,  and  would  fall  in 
with  his  proposition,  he  to  receive  credit  for  thus 
taking  the  initiative  in  case  his  move  proved 
successful. 

Such  amove  by  this  ci-devant  "aid"  was  cer- 
tainly lacking  in  good  taste,  particularly  in  view  of 
the  favors  we  had  granted  him  in  a  hearty  spirit  of 
good-will  for  his  own  success. 

However,  one  of   the   astronomers  to  whom  he 


288       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

wrote,  who  was  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  distin- 
guished in  the  country — Professor  Peters — notified 
me  of  the  move  sur  le  tapis,  and  gave  me  a  portion 
of  the  reply  he  had  sent  to  the  "  young  and  ambi- 
tious "  astronomer,  in  which  he  advised  him  to 
leave  such  questions  to  older  heads,  telling  the 
young  gentleman  that  he  was  entirely  wrong  ;  that 
the  Naval  Observatory  was  conducted  under  the 
then  superintendent  (myself)  in  the  best  interests 
of  astronomy,  and  that  it  was  much  better  as  it 
was  than  it  would  be  under  the  auspices  of  scientists, 
who  would  be  always  squabbling  for  place  and  the 
maintenance  of  individual  opinions  :  whereas  in  the 
naval  administrations,  the  Department  could  select 
officers  of  known  administrative  ability  to  conduct  its 
affairs,  which  it  certainly  had  done  at  that  time  with 
eminent  success;  that  the  astronomer  would  soon 
be  merged  into  an  administrator,  and  his  scientific 
attainments  lost  in  the  sphere  for  which  he  was  best 
adapted  ;  and  that  in  making  the  superintendent,  an 
astronomer  would  be  lost  to  the  scientific  world, 
for  one  could  not  attend  to  both  duties  with  full 
justice  to  each.* 

*  This  same  wise  conclusion  has  been  reached  by  the  French  gov- 
ernment, which  (after  seeing  that  the  Paris  Observatory  was  falling 
backward  by  reason  of  the  demands  upon  the  valuable  time  of 
its  astronomers,  Leverrier,  Arago,  and  others,  which  curtailed  their 
scientific  work),  made  an  experiment  after  our  present  system,  and 
put  its  observatory  under  the  charge  of  Admiral  Mouchet,  of  the 
French  navy,  for  a  fixed  term  of  five  years,  and  the  success  of  the 
management  has  been  such  that  his  superintendency  has  been  con- 
tinued beyond  the  term  of  his  original  appointment.  (F.  P.  B.  S.) 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        289 

So  this  attempt  failed,  and  the  Cincinnati  direc- 
tor had  the  grace  to  make  the  amende  honorable  by 
subsequently  informing  me  by  letter  of  his  move- 
ment and  of  its  failure,  admitting  that  he  had  been 
mistaken  in  his  idea  as  to  the  wishes  of  the  promi- 
nent astronomers,  and  enclosing  copies  of  their 
letters  to  him  upon  the  subject,  as  being  due  to  me, 
and  I  have  preserved  them. 

That  professor  soon  afterwards  became  dissatisfied 
with  his  position  at  the  Cincinnati  Observatory  and 
left  it,  returning  to  Washington  and  obtaining  em- 
ployment in  another  branch  of  science,  into  which, 
according  to  his  proclivities,  he  is  occasionally  inter- 
jecting researches  entirely  irrelevant  to  the  duties 
of  his  position — really  in  interference  with  the  duties 
and  studies  of  others  in  the  discharge  of  their 
legitimate  work. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

MY  ADMINISTRATION  OF  THE  OBSERVATORY  AF- 
FAIRS— THE  TRANSIT  OF  VENUS  COMMISSION— 
THE  ECLIPSES  OF  THE  SUN — THE  GREAT  EQUA- 
TORIAL— THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  "  WEATHER  BU- 
REAU "—VALUABLE  WORK  OF  THE  OBSERVATORY 
—MY  RETIREMENT  FROM  ACTIVE  SERVICE — AN 
END. 

As  I  have  intimated,  in  the  discharge  of  the 
duties  of  my  superintendency,  the  study  necessarily 
compelled  by  it  was  congenial  to  my  tastes,  and  I 
soon  became  wrapped  up  in  the  welfare  and  success 
of  the  Institution,  to  which  I  remained  attached 
and  in  charge  of  whose  work  I  continued  for  a 
period  of  seven  years,  being  promoted  in  May,  1 871  >7 
to  the  grade  of  Rear  Admiral  serving  and  until  1874, 
when,  by  operation  of  law — having  reached  the  age 
of  sixty-two — I  was  retired  from  active  duty. 

During  my  incumbency  of  that  position  many 
events  occurred  which,  absorbing  the  attention  of  the 
whole  world,  gave  our  scientific  corps  opportunities 
of  which  its  members  availed  themselves  to  the 
lasting  credit  of  the  Institution  and  with  distinction 
won  for  themselves  for  the  result  of  their  labors. 

There  was  the  observation  of  the  Total  Eclipse  of 
the  Sun  in  August  7th,  1869,  the  reports  and  discus- 
290 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.        2()I 

sions  of  which  by  the  naval  observing  parties  under 
my  direction  formed  an  exceedingly  interesting 
quarto  volume  of  217  pages,  with  twelve  illustrations. 

Believing  that  the  experience  of  our  Professors 
in  the  observation  of  that  eclipse  should  be  availed 
of  in  the  further  elucidation  of  the  subjects  involved 
in  such  phenomena,  I  applied  to  the  Navy  Depart- 
ment for  such  authority  as  would  enable  our  Pro- 
fessors to  take  observations  of  the  Total  Solar 
Eclipse  of  December  22,  1870.  My  efforts  were 
promptly  seconded  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
who  detailed  Professors  Newcomb,  Hall,  Hark- 
ness  and  Eastman  for  that  purpose,  and  a  very 
large  edition  of  the  reports  of  their  work  was 
published  under  the  auspices  of  the  Observatory. 

With  a  desire  to  advance  the  standard  of  this 
Observatory  by  adding  so  to  its  equipment  as  to 
enable  its  Professors  to  pursue  special  investigations 
with  facilities  not  surpassed  by  other  similar  insti- 
tutions, I  applied  for  an  appropriation  for  the  pur- 
chase of  a  refracting  telescope  of  great  size  and 
power.  Urging  upon  the  authorities  of  the  Navy 
Department  the  advantage  of  it,  I  obtained  a 
recommendation  that  Congress  should  grant  the 
request.  This  I  followed  up  with  all  the  influence 
I  could  bring  to  bear  upon  the  proper  committees 
in  Congress  through  the  scientific  associations 
throughout  the  country,  and  secured  the  necessary 
sanction,  and  in  time  the  appropriations  therefor. 

This  enabled  me  to  contract  with  Messrs.  Alvan 
Clark  &  Sons,  of  Cambridgeport,  Mass.,  in  August, 


2Q2       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

1870,  for  the  construction  of  a  refracting  telescope 
of  good  definition,  and  of  26  inches  clear  aperture, 
mounted  equatorially. 

The  glass  for  this  great  instrument  was  ground, 
polished,  and  completed  in  November,  1872.  And 
the  great  equatorial,  complete  in  all  its  parts, 
mounted  in  the  new  dome  erected  south  of  the 
main  building,  was  delivered  by  the  contractors  on 
the  20th  day  of  November  1873. 

This  instrument  was  placed  in  the  charge  of  Pro- 
fessor Newcomb,  who  at  once  began  his  observations. 
I  being  sure  that  the  best  results  would  follow 
under  this  distinguished  astronomer. 

The  occasion  of  its  inauguration  was  duly  cele- 
brated at  the  Observatory  and  made  the  opportu- 
nity for  congratulations  to  the  makers,  who  were 
present  at  the  entertainment,  and  who  appreciated 
the  compliments  paid  to  this  triumph  of  American 
skill  and  mechanical  attainments.  Whilst  to  those 
whose  aid  had  been  so  cordially  given  to  our  efforts 
to  secure  the  great  equatorial,  the  thanks  of  the 
astronomers  present  was  given  with  sincerity.  One 
of  the  strongest  friends  of  the  Observatory  in  this 
case,  was  Senator  Charles  D.  Drake,  who  worked 
earnestly  and  successfully  for  this  great  instrument, 
and  saw  to  the  passage  of  the  bill  by  the  Senate. 

He  was,  upon  leaving  the  Senate,  made  Chief 
Justice  of  the  U.  S.  Court  of  Claims,  and  attendingthe 
entertainment  on  this  occasion,  expressed  his  delight 
at  having  been  able  to  aid  in  the  good  work  done. 

In   1871,  I  communicated  with  the  Department 


ADMIRAL   SANDS   AND   THE   GREAT   EQUATORIAL.— Page   2Q2. 


FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       2Q3 

regarding  the  propriety  of  our  taking  part  in  the 
observations  of  the  Transit  of  Venus,  which  was 
to  occur  on  December  8,  1874,  and  soon  obtained 
authority  to  expend  the  sum  of  $2,000  in  experi- 
menting upon  the  best  kinds  of  instruments  to  be 
used  in  the  observations  of  that  phenomenon.  In 
the  bill  making  this  appropriation  there  was  a  pro- 
vision creating  a  commission  to  be  charged  with 
the  conduct  of  these  experiments  and  the  direction 
of  all  the  parties  organized  under  the  act  to  make 
the  contemplated  observations.  The  commission 
was  composed  of  the  superintendent  of  the  Naval 
Observatory,  the  president  of  the  National  Academy 
of  Sciences  (Professor  Joseph  Henry),  the  superin- 
tendent of  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey  (Professor  C. 
Peirce)  and  two  professors  of  mathematics  from  the 
Observatory  (Professors  Simon  Newcomb,  U.  S.  N., 
and  William  Harkness,  U.  S.  N.) 

The  commission  met  at  the  Observatory  and 
completed  its  organization,  I  being  chosen  to  be 
its  president.  Frequent  sessions  were  had  ;  parties 
of  observers  were  organized,  and  equipped  with 
perfect  instruments  ;  and  detailed  instructions  were, 
after  thorough  study  and  discussion  by  the  commis- 
sion, formulated  and  adopted  for  the  guidance  and 
control  of  the  observing  parties. 

The  papers  published  and  issued  by  the  commis- 
sion in  connection  with  this  subject  were  most 
interesting  publications  and  were  eagerly  applied 
for  by  scientific  institutions  and  students  of  astron- 
omy throughout  the  country. 


2Q4       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

Eight  photographic  stations  were  selected,  four  in 
the  Northern  Hemisphere,  in  China  and  Japan,  and 
four  in  the  Southern  Hemisphere,  in  New  Zealand, 
Queensland,  Tasmania  and  Kerguelen  Island. 

The  Navy  Department  furnished  transportation 
of  the  parties  to  their  stations,  and  they  departed 
on  their  mission. 

During  my  term  of  service,  and  in  its  earlier  days, 
I  was  requested  by  M.  Leverrier  and  M.  Buy 
Ballot  to  co-operate  with  the  European  observatories 
in  simultaneous  observations  throughout  our  coun- 
try, with  a  view  to  the  collation  of  meteorological 
observations  such  as  would  enable  us  to  predict 
the  beginning  and  the  paths  of  storms.  This  pro- 
position I  was  compelled  to  decline,  stating  my 
reasons  as  being :  first,  that  the  Observatory  made 
no  meteorological  observations  other  than  such  as 
were  incidental  to  our  astronomical  work ;  second, 
that  we  had  not  the  force  nor  the  means  for  such 
extended  observations  over  our  vast  territory.  This 
response  brought  a  letter  from  M.  Leverrier,  ex- 
pressing surprise  that  such  a  country,  and  such  an 
Observatory,  should  decline  to  co-operate  for  the 
benefit  of  science,  in  such  a  laudable  undertaking. 

I,  thereupon,  conferred  with  my  friend,  Professor 
Henry  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  asking  him 
if  he  could  not  make  a  favorable  reply  and  take 
this  work  to  his  institution,  since  I  had  at  an  early 
date  informed  him  that  my  policy  was  to  separate 
the  Observatory  from  all  that  was  not  incidental  to 
its  legitimate  province  of  astronomy — a  policy  which 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL.       2QS 

he  thought  was  wisely  adopted ;  but  he  said  that  he 
had  no  funds  for  such  work  as  Leverrier  proposed  ; 
and,  although  such  observations  were  from  some 
points  forwarded  to  the  Smithsonian  Institution 
gratuitously,  still  he  had  not  the  means  to  make 
them  public  or  useful. 

I  then  bethought  me  of  the  Signal  Bureau,  which 
had  telegraphic  communication  with  all  the  military 
posts,  and  I  suggested  to  General  Myer,  then  in 
charge  of  it,  that  he  should  enter  upon  the  work, 
and,  after  talking  over  the  matter  with  him,  I  wrote 
to  M.  Leverrier,  and  suggested  that  he  open  corre- 
spondence with  General  Myer  in  regard  to  his  pro- 
position. 

From  this  may  date  the  rise  and  progress  of  the 
vast  work  of  the  "  Weather  Bureau,"  which  is  now 
so  useful  in  its  workings  all  throughout  the  country 
and  such  a  protection  to  the  craft  engaged  in  our 
coastwise  commerce,  which  receive  thus  timely 
warning  of  threatened  changes  in  the  weather. 

To  the  important  work  of  the  Observatory 
specially  mentioned  already — as  in  addition  to  the 
regular  work  of  the  Professors,  which  was  kept  up 
as  shown  in  the  annual  reports  issued — I  can  claim 
that  to  my  efforts  were  due  such  good  results,  dur- 
ing my  administration,  as  the  fixing  of  its  province 
as  purely  an  astronomical  observatory  and  the 
plan  of  awarding  to  each  individual  due  credit  for 
his  independent  work  with  responsibility  for  any 
errors  to  be  found  in  his  scientific  work. 

I  was  instrumental  in  securing  for  the  Professors 


296       FROM    REEFER   TO    REAR-ADMIRAL. 

of  mathematics  their  proper  relative  rank  in  the 
Navy,  with  corresponding  increase  of  pay  on  the 
basis  of  longevity  of  service,  so  that  they  received, 
on  retiring  from  age,  more  pay  than  they  had  on 
the  active  list  at  the  time  I  took  charge.  I  aided 
elevating  of  the  standard  of  the  "  aids"  or  assistants, 
by  an  increase  of  their  pay,  and  in  establishing  the 
requirement  of  a  strict  examination,  before  appoint- 
ment, by  a  board  of  the  Professors  of  the  Observ- 
atory. 

There  was  during  my  term  an  increase  in  the 
quantity  of  matter  in  the  annual  volumes  of  obser- 
vations, with  the  resuscitation  of  records  of  observa- 
tions made  in  the  early  days  of  the  Observatory 
(which  had  been  buried  amongst  the  manuscript 

archives  of  the  work  of  the   Institution")  and  their 

*  / 

publication  in  their  proper  place  among  the  annual 
volumes. 

The  sending  out  over  the  world  expeditions  for 
the  observations  of  eclipses,  and  the  Transit  of 
Venus, — securing  by  strenuous  and  earnest  efforts 
the  appropriations  for  making  them  successes, — was 
a  subject  of  pride  with  me,  and  I  believe  I  had  the 
good  will  of  the  whole  Observatory  staff  upon  my 
retirement,  since,  without  my  knowledge,  someone 
had  introduced  into  Congress  a  bill,  looking  to  my 
being  exempted  from  the  operation  of  the  general 
retiring  law  and  to  my  retention  at  the  head  of  the 
Observatory  until  the  close  of  the  work  and  the 
publication  of  the  report  upon  the  Transit  of  Venus. 

But   my   strength    had    been    failing   under  the 


FROM    REEFER  TO    REAR-ADMIRAL.       2Q7 

malarial  influences  of  the  flats  and  marshes  back  of 
the  Observatory  grounds,  and  I  felt  that  rest  would 
prolong  my  life.  I  thought,  moreover,  that  there 
should  not  be  any  exceptions  to  a  rule  of  that  kind, 
whose  operation  was  felt  from  the  oldest  to  the 
youngest  officer  in  the  service,  and  that  to  make  a 
precedent  in  one  case  would  lead  to  frequent  applica- 
tions for  the  same  benefit,  backed  by  the  favoritism 
of  those  then  in  power  ;  so  I  declined  the  intended 
compliment  and  requested  my  friends  to  stop  the 
move,  and  on  the  I2th  February,  1874,  was  retired 
by  operation  of  law,  having  reached  the  age  of  sixty- 
two  years,  and  having  been  over  forty-seven  years  on 
the  active  list  of  the  navy. 

The  occasion  of  my  retirement  from  active  duty 
prompted  the  officers  of  the  Observatory,  with  whom 
I  had  been  associated  for  seven  long  and  happy 
years  of  service,  to  give  kindly  expression  to  their 
regrets  at  my  leaving  them,  Professor  Yarnall  being 
chosen  as  their  spokesman. 

It  was  a  source  of  gratification  to  me,  thus  to  find 
that  they  appreciated  the  efforts  I  had  made  for  their 
advantage  and  for  their  happiness.  The  respect  of 
talented  men,  such  as  were  the  Professors  attached 
to  the  Observatory  during  my  term  there,  with 
their  continued  friendship  since  my  retirement, 
has  pleased  me  sincerely. 

Numerous  letters  from  my  old  associates  and 
brother-officers  came  to  me  when  my  retirement 
was  announced  by  the  Navy  Department,  and  I  treas- 
ure them  for  my  children's  sake,  as  well  as  for  their 


2Q8       FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

contents,  that  in  after  years  they  may  from  them 
learn  what  of  success  has  attended  their  father's 
efforts  in  following  out  the  line  of  conduct  he  had 
resolved  upon,  in  the  earliest  days  of  his  career  ;  that 
they  may  understand  how  precious  to  those  ad- 
vanced in  years  is  the  consciousness  of  duty  well 
done ;  and  that  they  may  see  why  I  am  so  much  at- 
tached to  those  old  comrades  of  my  youth,  of  whom 
they  have  heard  me  so  often  speak,  whose  friendship 
I  have  preserved  and  strengthened  during  my  long 
career,  and  whose  association,  in  these,  the  declining 
years  of  my  life,  brings  me  such  pleasure  as  I  revive 
thus  the  happiness  of  those  days  long  gone,  the 
very  memory  of  which,  with  all  the  joys  of  a  happy 
domestic  life,  keeps  me  still  young  at  heart,  although 
the  days  remaining  to  me  are  few  in  number. 
May  they  all  know  the  happiness  that  is  mine  ! 

NOTE. — I  deem  it  pardonable  in  me  to  add  here,  as  a  fitting  close 
to  the  last  chapter,  two  of  the  many  such  letters  to  which  my 
father  refers,  which  I  found  amongst  his  papers,  as  indicative  of  the 
sentiments  of  esteem  and  affection  entertained  for  him  by  those  who 
knew  him,  his  attainments  as  an  officer,  and  his  character  as  a  man. 

BUREAU  OF  YARDS  AND  DOCKS, 
NAVY  DEPARTMENT. 

WASHINGTON,  27  Feb.,  1874. 
MY  DEAR  SANDS  : — 

In  putting  off  your  harness  you  have  good  ground  to  be  happy,  for 
you  look  back  on  a  long  career  in  the  navy,  without  a  stain  upon  its 
record;  and  you  take  with  you  to  your  retirement  the  respect  and 
affection  of  a  host  of  sincere  friends  among  your  old  associates. 

Your  administration  at  the  Observatory  has  been  able  and  kind, 
and  altogether  excellent,  and  I  congratulate  you  with  all  my  heart 
upon  your  successful  and  good  service.  I  return  the  papers  you  have 


FROM    REEFER  TO   REAR-ADMIRAL. 

permitted  me  to  read,  and  I  share,  as  your  brother  officer,  in  the 
honest  pride  with  which  you  allude  to  the  good  work  you  have  so 
ably  directed. 

Wishing  you  long  life  and  all  happiness,  I  remain,  my  dear  Sands, 
always  faithfully  yours, 

C.  R.  P.  RODGERS. 
REAR  ADMIRAL  SANDS, 

U.  S.  Navy,  i5th  Street. 

NATIONAL  ACADEMY  OF  SCIENCES, 

WASHINGTON,  March  ist,  1874. 
DEAR  SIR  : — 

On  the  occasion  of  your  retirement  from  the  Observatory  and  the 
Transit  of  Venus  Commission,  I  beg  leave  on  behalf  of  the  latter  as 
well  as  of  the  National  Academy  of  Sciences,  to  express  to  you 
the  high  appreciation  entertained  of  your  services  in  the  cause  of 
astronomy. 

Two  events  have  occurred  during  your  administration  of  the  Ob- 
servatory which  will  ever  connect  your  name  prominently  with  the 
history  of  this  establishment,  viz.,  the  erection  of  the  great  Equato- 
rial, the  largest  refracting  telescope  in  the  world,  alike  creditable  to 
the  intelligent  liberality  of  the  Government  of  the  U.  S.,  as  to  the 
skill  of  an  American  artizan;  and  the  appointment  of  a  commission 
with  a  liberal  appropriation  to  provide  for  the  observation  of  the 
Transit  of  Venus. 

Both  these  events  have  been  largely  brought  about  by  your  energy 
in  properly  placing  their  importance  before  our  government,  and 
by  your  unwearied  attention  to  the  duties  which  devolved  upon  you 
in  connection  with  them  as  the  executive  head  of  the  Observatory. 

For  these  services,  although  in  the  retirement  of  private  life,  you 
will  be  held  in  grateful  remembrance  by  the  lovers  of  astronomy, 
not  only  in  this  country,  but  in  every  other  part  of  the  civilized 
world,  where  this  noble  science  is  cultivated. 

Very  respectfully  yours,  etc., 
JOSEPH  HENRY, 

Pres.  Nat.  Academy  of  Science. 
ADMIRAL  SANDS,  U.  S.  N. 


INDEX. 


PAGB 

Adee,  Dr.  A.  A 58,    65 

Abbot,  Lieut.  Joel 58 

Arquimbeau,  Lieut 144 

African  Slave  Trade 193,  196,  199 

Armstrong,  Captain  James 201 

Arsenieff ,  Captain 217 

Adams,  Captain 224 

Alden,  Rear- Admiral  James 225,  229 

Acapulco  Harbor 231 

"Active,"  U.  S.C.S.  Str. 234 

Blake,  Hon.  Thomas  H 6 

Barry,  Purser  Garrett  R.   12 

Bassett,  Dr.  Henry  Willis 12,  38,     39 

Barnum,  Dr.  R.  D 12 

Box,  Midn.  Philip  M 12 

Barton,  Lieut.  C.  C '. 12 

Brazil  Station 15,  170 

Boarman,  Rear- Admiral   Charles 41 

Buchanan,  Midn.  John  M 12 

Brown,  Gov.  A.  E . .     46 

Burnett,  Gen.   Ward  B 59,     60 

Bache,  Mrs.  Anna 63 

Bolton,  Commodore  W.  C 77,  194 

Blake,  Commodore  George  S 83 

Breese,  Captain   S.  L 182 

Bache,  Prof.  A.  D 215,  230,  231 

Berryman,  Comdr.  O.  H 223 

Banning,  Mr 236 

301 


302  INDEX. 

PAGE 

Blockading  Service 241,  244-248 

Braine,  Rear-Admiral  D.  L 248 

Breck,  Actg.  Vol.  Lieut 249 

Barron,  Commodore  Samuel 222 

Butler,  Genl.  Benjamin  F 258,  259,  260 

Ballinger,  Hon.  Wm.  P 272 

Boston  Navy   Yard 278 

Buy  Ballot,  M 294 

Chauncey,  Commodore  Isaac 9 

Creighton,  Captain  John  O 23 

Cassin,  Commodore  Stephen  D 31 

Claxton,  Captain  Alexander 31 

Case,  Rear-Admiral  A.  L , 59 

Chandler,  Comdr.  William 82 

Crowley,  Lieut.  John  T 58 

Gushing,  Hon.  Caleb  90 

Champion,  Mr.  Sands " 104 

Coast  Survey  Service 82,  21 1,  235 

Chatard,  Captain  Frederick 1 50 

Canot,  Captain  Theodore 196-199 

"Columbus,"  U.  S.  Frigate 133-152 

Camp  Life,  Jersey  Coast 113,  114 

Clara  Novella 1 50 

California  Coast 234 

Castro,  Don  Ramon , 203 

Cooper,  Commodore 200 

Craven,  Captain  Tunis  A.  M 214 

Coney,  Acting  Master 264 

Clitz,  Rear-Admiral  J.  M.  B 265 

dishing,  Lieut.  William  B 267 

Clark,  Alvan,  &  Sons 291 

Clary,  Captain  A.  G 276 

Davis,  Hon.  John  L 6 

Downing,  Captain  Samuel  W II,     22 

DeCamp,  Rear-Admiral  John 12,    32 

Deacon,  Midn.  Robert 12 

Dennison,  Acting  Master  W.  E 249 


INDEX.  303 

PAGB 

Dueling  in  Navy 3 5,  36,  38,  39,  121,  122,  148 

Douglass,  Lieut.  Richard 22 

Doyle,  Midn.  James 59 

Davis,  Rear-Admiral  Charles  H 280,  282 

Drake,  Hon.  Charles  D 292 

"  Dacotah,"  U.  S.  Sloop  of  War 240,  245 

Downes,  Commodore  John 277,  278 

Emmons,  Captain 224 

Eastman,  Prof.  J.  E 291 

Frenches,  The 57 

French,  Maj. -General  Wm.  H 4,  187 

Farragut,  Admiral  D.  G n,  21,  33,     71 

Fox,  Ass't  Sec'y  of  Navy  G.  V 1 58,  179,  269 

First  Chief  Clerk  State  Dep't 183 

Fry,  Captain  Joseph ...211,  212 

Fyffe,  Rear-Admiral  Joseph  P 242 

Farley,  Lieut.  John ,    104 

Fort  Caswell 248 

"  Fort  Fisher " ' 260,  261,  262,  263,  264 

"  Fort  Jackson,"  U.  S.  Str 248 

Ferguson,  Prof 282,  283 

Gallagher,  Captain  John 40 

Gardner,  Commodore  Wm.  H n,  231,  234,  238 

Green,  Rear-Admiral  Jos.  F 28 

Gansvoort,  Midn.  Peter 12 

Gedney,  Captain  Thomas  R 12,  84,     95 

Garibaldi,  General  J 174 

"  Guerriere,"  U.  S.  Frigate 22 

Griswold,  Judge. , 105 

Gray,  Mr.  George 107 

Genoa 146 

Gibraltar , 137,  138 

Gordon,  Comdr.  A.  G 194,  205,  208 

Gregory,  Commodore  F.  H 210 

Glynn,  Commodore  James 224 

Galveston,  Texas 271,  272 


304  INDEX. 

PACK 

Gillis,  Capt.  J.  M 280,  281 

Grant,  General  U.  S 269 

Havana 64 

Hunter,  Med.  Director  E.  B 12,  32 

Haskell,  Prof 5 

Hook,  Major  James  H 2 

Henry,  Prof.  Joseph 293,  294,  299 

Hurst,  Lieut.  George  W 12 

Hoffman,  Captain  Beekman  V ; 26 

Hun t,  Lieut.  Montgomery 59 

Henley,  Commodore  T.  D 59 

Hassler,  Prof.  Ferdinand  R 87,  89,  98,  120,  131 

Harrison,  Lieut.  H.  N 134 

Hastings,  Hon.  Charles,  R.  N 206 

Hunt,  Lieut.  Symmes  H 264 

Hall,  Prof.  Asaph 291 

Hoban,  Mr.  James 56 

Hinton,  Comdr.  A.  C 12 

Harwood,  Captain  A.  A 231 

Harkness,  Prof.  William 291,  293 


Izard,  Lieut.  George , 


Johnston,   Dr.  William 38 

Jenkins,  Midn.  W.  J 12,     32 

Jones,  Commodore  Jacob 77 

Januaria,  Princess  of  Brazil 168 

Jenkins,  Rear-Admiral  Thornton  A * 70,  82,  97,  140 

"  Java,"  U.  S.  Frigate 70 

Kidd,  Captain,  Treasure  of 102 

Kennon,  Lieut.  Wm.  H 33 

Kennon,  Captain  Beverley , 42,    44 

Kilty,  Rear-Admiral  A.  H 134 

Ketchum,    General 235 

Kearney,  General  Phil 190 

Lawrence,  Lieut.  N.  C 12 

Lockwood,  Lieut.  Samuel 42,     53 


INDEX.  305 


Long  Island  Shore  Survey 101,  102 

Lee,  Rear-Admiral  S.  P 179,240,245,  250 

Lanman,  Rear-Admiral  Joseph 256,  257 

Lawson,  Lieut.  Roswell  H 258 

"  Let  Her  Rip,"  Blockade  Runner 252,  253 

Lamb,  Colonel  William 266 

Leverrier,  M •  ••  ••  294,  295 

McClung,  Midn.  Alex.  M 9>  I2>  35>  36 

Menifere.Mr 10 

Mattison,  Commodore  Joseph 1 1 

Markoe,  Mr.  Francis 39 

Meade,  Captain  R.  W 82 

Morris,  Commodore  Charles 159 

Morgan,  Commodore  Charles  W 137,  138,  I59»  ^5 

Maury,  Captain  Matthew  F 178,  280,  281 

Mullany,  Rear-Admiral  I.  R.  M 179 

Mackenzie,  Commodore  A.  S 182 

Mexican  War 182 

Moran,  Midn.  Wm.  Plume 173 

Marston,  Captain  John 209,  210 

Mallory,  Hon.  Stephen  R 223,  224 

Morris,  Lieut.  George  U 224 

Macauley,  Commodore  Charles  S 227 

Magruder,  General  J.  Bankhead 272,  273,  276 

Masonboro  Inlet  Salt  Works 249,  250 

Madeira J95 

March,  U-  S.  Consul 195 

Montevideo I72 

Maynard,  Captain  Lafayette 134 

Myer,  General  A • 295 

Maffitt,  Captain  J.  N 214 

Mann,  Colonel 274 

Newton,  Captain  John  T 58,  64,  69 

Norfolk  Society 71/72,  73 

Nicholson,  Commodore .- 77 

November  Meteors,   1833 75 

Naval  Observatory 178,  280,  299 

20 


306  INDEX. 

PACK 

Newcomb,  Prof.  Simon 291,  292,  293 

Nourse,  Prof.  J.  E 281 

Oribe,  General 172 

Peck,  Captain 3 

Pedro  I.,  Dom,  Emperor  of  Brazil 47 

Pedro  II.,  Dom,         «        "      "      49,167 

Page,  Captain  Thos.  Jefferson 82,  91,  133,  140,  142 

Porter,  Admiral  David  D 82,  122,  123,  140,  142,  256,  268 

Patterson,  Captain  Carlisle  P 128 

Payne,  John  Howard I  ^8 

Perry,  Captain  Matthew  C 185 

Poor,  Rear- Admiral  Charles  H 224 

Paulding,  Rear-Admiral  Hiram 227 

Port  Mahon 142 

Preston,  Lieut.  S.  W 257 

"  Porpoise,"  U.  S.  Brig 193 

Pearson,  Captain  R.  H 231 

Peirce,  Prof.  Charles 285,  293 

Peters,  Prof 288 

Ringgold,  Captain  Cadwallader 1 1 

de  Rosas,  General  Manuel 28 

Rodrigues,  Prof 79 

Rodgers,  Rear-Admiral  John 82,  124,  227 

Rowan,  Vice- Admiral  S.  C 59,  122,  123,  158,  226 

Renard,  Prof.  Charles , 97,  103,  no,  in 

Rio  de  Janeiro 21,  170 

Renshaw,  Lieut.  F.  B 59 

Rodgers,  Rear-Admiral  C.  R.  P 192,  299 

Rootes,  Comdr.  T.  R 208 

"  Roanoke,"  U.  S.  S . .  y 255 

Radford,  Rear-Admiral  "William 108 

Rhind,  Commodore  A.  C 258 

Rebellion,  The 219 

Rivera,  President,  Buenos  Ayres , 173,  175 

Southard,  Hon.  Samuel  L 67 

Sands,  Rear-Admiral  Joshua  R n,  22,  38,    39 


INDEX.  307 


Stellwagen,  Captain  H.  S 12,     52 

Smith,  Commodore  Melancthon 59 

Sands,  Major  Robert  M 63 

Slaughter,  Comdr.  A.  G 73 

Spottswood,  Lieut.  C.  F.  M 159 

Scott,  Rear-Admiral  G.  S 134,  160,  240 

Spencer,  Captain  W.  C 134 

Slocum,  Consul  Geo.  W 166 

Semmes,  Captain  Raphael 192 

Slemmer,  Lieut.  John 222 

Sumner,  Maj. -General  E.  V 235 

"  St.  Louis,"  U.  S.  Sloop  of  War 59 

Smoot,  Lieut.  Joseph 63 

Strong,  Major,  U.  S.  A 66 

Santiago  de  Cuba 66 

St.  Thomas — Its  Governor 67 

Slave  Trade 178 

Smith,  Colonel  Ashbel 272,  273 

Smith,   General  J.  Kirby 272,  273,  277 

Stevens,   Rear-Admiral  Thos.  H 277,  278 

Thruston,  Midn.  James   12 

Taylor,  Rear- Admiral  Wm.  R 32 

Tilton,  Lieut 150 

Toulon 163,  164 

Thatcher,  Admiral  H.  K 270 

Turner,  Commodore  Peter 170 

Taliaferro,  General 228 

Terry,  General  A.  H 261,  266,  267,  268 

Teneriffe,  Peak  of 202,  203 

Tinkelpaugh,  Captain 231 

"  Tallahassee,"  Rebel  Steamer,  Escapes 252 

Urquiza,  General 172 

de  Very,  Admiral,  Count 1^5 

Van  Horten,  Mayor  of  Galveston 277 

"  Vandalia,"  U.  S.  Sloop  of  War 9,     ia 


308  INDEX. 

PACK 

Williams,  Midn.  John  T 12>  35>  36 

Warrington,  Commodore 70 

Wise,  Hon.  Henry  A oo 

White,  Midn 33 

West,  Lieut.  Louis ^4 

Wise,  Mr.  George  D 134 

Wise,  Commander  H.  A 224 

Wilkes,  Commodore  Charles 227,  280 

"  Walker,"  U.  S.  C.  S.  Str 211 

"  Washington,"  U.  S.  Brig 179 

Wilson,  Missionaiy 207 

Wright,  Maj.-General  H.  G 226 

Wales,  Surgn. -General  Philip  S 249 

Welles,  Hon.  Gideon 250 

West  Gulf  Blockading  Squadron . . , .   270 

Wilson,  Lieut.-Commander 278 

Yandell,  Surgeon 276 

Yarnall,  Prof 297 

"  Yorktown,"  U.  S.  Sloop  of  War. 200 


236398 


